Golden Sun Story
by Icy Cake
Summary: Experience the adventure of Book One through the eyes of our heroes, starting on the day before the tragic incident in Vale. Currently under revision! Chapter 6 is complete!
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I know it has been awhile since I've last updated this story… But I have fallen back in love with the Golden Sun games and have decided to revise each chapter of this fiction.

I really couldn't believe how awful my grammar was when I began this story as well as the constant plot holes I've discovered from rereading my atrocious chapters. My, my, I need to revise a lot! It's safe to read _only_ up to what chapter I had last revised. Read beyond that then… I will not hold responsibility for the loss of your brain cells. Don't say that I didn't warn you.

(If you want to compare my revised chapters with my original works for the heck of it, I'd regret to send it to you upon request.)

**Chapter 1**

It was early morning and my parents were still asleep.

_Excellent!_

I quickly got dressed and quietly tiptoed down the stairs while carrying my boots. The rumbling sound of my father's snore was the last thing I heard before gently closing the door behind me. Letting out a sigh of relief, I grinned in triumph but quickly shivered at the chilly air. The sun was starting to rise and before long, everyone in Vale would be awake.

I slipped my boots on and jogged as quietly as I could to our meeting place; the bridge near the Healer's Sanctum. Garet was already waiting there, looking half asleep. Once he saw me coming, the redhead raised a hand and waved.

"Now we have to wait for Jenna and Felix," he said with a yawn. He leaned against the wooden post and sat down, crossing his legs and resting his head on his fists. I joined him.

Garet, Jenna, Felix and I all planned to sneak into Sol Sanctum so we could get a look inside. We were never given permission to enter so we had to find another way. So _this_ was what we could come up with: Sneak into the Sanctum in the early morning. That was the best plan we have ever came up with.

Silently, we waited for the siblings to arrive while yawning from the lack of sleep every so often. _Sigh_, I was getting impatient. "Do you think they forgot?" I asked with a wide-mouthed yawn.

"You're too impatient, Isaac," said a feminine voice from behind; causing me to jump in surprise. I looked at the speaker, already knowing who it was. Jenna was looming over me and right behind her was her older brother, Felix. She had her long violet hair tied in a ponytail as always while Felix had his long, dark and messy hair covering half his face. "I had to practically punch Felix awake!" she continued.

She said that a little too loud. We all hushed her and looked around for anyone who might have been awake to spot us.

Felix hushed her in haste, "Not so loud! You want us to get caught?" His tone was slightly bitter, most probably due to Jenna having to force him to wake up.

I climbed to my feet and dusted my hands. "Good. We're all here," I began before turning towards the dark-haired boy, "Now, Felix, lead the way."

He looked at me with a shocked expression. "What!" he cried a little too loud.

Garet, Jenna and I quickly motioned him to quiet down.

"Why me?" he continued, after glancing cautiously to the village. "It was _your_ idea to sneak into the Sanctum, so you should lead!" he pointed out.

"No way am I leading!" I protested in a whisper, "Garet, you lead then."

He was about to say something but Jenna interrupted: "Uh uh! No way! Isaac, you can't pick Garet, he makes the worst decisions!" she shrieked, having forgotten to keep her voice low.

Felix, Garet and I silently hushed her.

"_I_ make the worst decisions?" the redhead repeated, shaking his head and looking annoyed. "Well, if I make the worst decisions," he muttered sarcastically, "then I pick Isaac to be the leader."

"Me too," agreed Jenna.

I opened my mouth to protest but stopped. They were all staring at me as if I had no other choice. I could have argued – no, I couldn't have argued. Whatever Jenna decided was _always_ what we decided. I learned that the painful way.

Frowning slightly with a sigh, I threw my hands in the air in defeat. "Fine! Follow me…" I groaned.

We carefully walked up the stairs leading to the Healer of Vale. I led the way with Garet right behind followed by Jenna and taking up the rear was Felix who would warn us if anyone was approaching.

I walked past the Healer's Sanctum and scouted for meditating monks. There was no one which must conclude that we were really early. Usually the monks could be seen meditating in front of the Sanctum in the morning.

Excitement took over my nerves. Neither of us had ever dreamed of entering the sacred Sol Sanctum. The closest point I've reached was the single tree by the river before the monks would send me away. In fact, it was the closest all four of us had ever made it. But today, we will go farther.

I walked up the stairs and stopped on the last one. Standing at the top, with his back turned to us, was the Healer of Vale. Immediately I tensed up in fear of getting caught although I did not think he knew we were behind him. I motioned everyone behind me to stop and head back down before he noticed us.

Before I took the first step down, I heard him speak my name. I froze on the spot. So did the others.

"Isaac, you know it's dangerous to enter the Sanctum," said the wise old man. He turned around and faced us. Tired, kind grey eyes looked upon each of our faces. "Felix, Jenna, and Garet, you all as well know better than to go to such a dangerous place on your own."

"Uh…" I tried to give a good reason to why we were climbing the stairs to the Healer's Sanctum but could not form the words.

Garet somehow found the courage to speak _truthfully_, "We just wanted to see what's inside."

The Healer slowly shook his head."I know you are very curious about what's inside," he said, waving a finger at us. "But your curiosity may get you hurt. Now you better get back home before your parents find out that you were trying to get into the Sanctum."

"You won't tell them?" asked Jenna.

With a smile, the Healer answered, "I won't as long as you stay away from here."

"We will," we chorused with relief. Not wanting to feel any guiltier from getting caught, we ran back down without looking back.

"Let's meet _there_ after breakfast," Garet announced before entering his home. With silent nods, the rest of us agreed and hurried home.

Later that morning, after dragging myself out of bed, I ate a quick meal and left to meet my friends at our designated meeting spot. How the fence before the village's storage cave became _our_ special place was due to the beauty of the nearby forests. And… because the four of us had hidden little trinkets that we each considered a precious treasure deep inside the cave when we were small.

'_Someday, we'll find them again,'_ _Jenna had said after placing her little ring in the poorly dug hole. 'When we do, we'll remember the fun times we had in here!'_

Yeah, that was the day before the Mayor proclaimed the cavern to be too dangerous for us children (_especially_ his grandson) to play around in and had sealed the fence shut with a weak barrier. Only Psynergy could unlock the seal which the four of us were unable to use to a decent level even to this day. (The best thing I could do was make grass grow… in a pot of dirt. A _small_ pot of dirt. Although a small feat compared to what my parents could do, it was a great achievement for me since none of my friends could pull something like that yet.)

Adults were only allowed to enter the cavern ever since then and our treasures would forever remain hidden within. As Jenna had said, we will someday retrieve our treasures after many years had passed.

I spotted a red-haired boy crossing the wooden bridge in a sleepy daze.

"Garet!" I shouted, making the boy turn around. Upon noticing me, he paused to wait for me to catch up before forming a fist in the air. Making a fist of my own, I punched his knuckles in a friendly matter as a sign of greeting between us.

"Man, I'm tired!" he moaned. He let out a big yawn which also made me yawn. "I couldn't get back to sleep. All the excitement I had kept me awake."

I grinned at him. I too had trouble sleeping but didn't want to admit it.

We approached our meeting spot and saw the siblings already there. "Hey guys," Jenna greeted cheerfully.

I blinked tiredly, wondering how she could be fully awake after this morning's excursion.

With a yawn, Garet and I returned her greeting.

There was a smirk from the dark-haired boy. "Couldn't go back to sleep you two? Me and Jenna fell back to sleep once we got home," he said.

Garet heaved a heavy sigh, trying to suppress a yawn. "That's because everyone in your family are heavy sleepers," he stated, resting his hands behind his head.

I laughed. Unexpectedly, Jenna punched me in the shoulder and kicked Garet in the shins. "And you're _not_, Garet?" she asked in a threatening voice.

The redhead yelped and rubbed his leg in pain. "Ow! Hey! Why'd you kick me for?"

"For calling me a heavy sleeper which I am not. Felix is the only heavy sleeper in the house. I had a hard time getting him to wake up this morning for breakfast," she explained, crossing her arms.

Giving his sister a sullen glare, Felix snorted, "I like to sleep in late in the morning, you know."

"Lazy," Jenna retorted.

"Hmph," was the brother's only reply.

Leaving the hot sun for the cool shade in the trees, we rested on the grass to decide what to do for the rest of the day.

We couldn't come up with anything fun. The only recurring idea I had was sneaking into Sol Sanctum. I sighed, "It's too bad we couldn't get into Mt. Aleph. I bet there would have been pretty cool stuff inside."

"Maybe when we learn to use Psynergy we could go in there," said Jenna. She stood up. "The Healer must be right about it being dangerous. Once we learn to use our Psynergy to defend ourselves, we might be given permission to go to Sol Sanctum!" she finished, smiling with anxiety at the thought.

I sighed again, "But that'll take forever! It took my dad years to learn how to use his Psynergy. Besides, he won't teach me until I'm fifteen."

"That's the same with my parents," Garet piped in.

"Now that I think about it, Mom and Dad said that when Felix and I are ready, they would teach us," the girl recalled, her smile growing beyond its usual limit. "And right now, I think I _am _ready! What about you, Felix?"

He shrugged, obviously not interested, "I don't know. It's a lot of work."

"So what if it's a lot of work? You get to use Psynergy _and_ see Sol Sanctum!" his sister cried. "Come on! We get to see Sol Sanctum ourselves!" Without letting her older sibling say another word, she grabbed Felix's arm and dragged him with her.

Left forgotten, I lay in the grass and sighed again. I didn't want to wait until I was fifteen to begin my Psynergy training. I begged my father a few times to teach me but he refused. He kept telling me that I was too young.

'_Too young'_? Ha!

I would be turning fourteen in a month. I was well mature for my age. At least… I thought I was. Drawing in a deep breath, I sighed at the unfairness between my parents and Jenna's.

"What's up?"

I turned my head and looked at the older boy lying beside me. Garet was roughly the same age as me; about three months older. So eventually, he would reach age fifteen before I would, making me feel quite envious. "It's too long," I told him.

"We still got about a year," he replied, staring up at the leaves above him wearily as if falling asleep. "I can't wait."

"Neither can I," I groaned impatiently. "Let's go ask my dad if he'll teach me." Sitting up, I brushed grass off my clothes and headed straight for home.

Garet followed right behind shortly after. "You asked him so many times. I don't think he'll let you," he stated with a yawn.

"It doesn't hurt to try again."

It didn't take long to find my father working outside with an axe in hand. Swiftly and accurately, he chopped pieces of firewood with great ease. He stopped once he saw me and Garet approaching to give us a smile.

Returning the smile with an innocent grin, I came up to my father and spoke to him in my most polite voice, "Dad?"

He looked at me, a hint of suspicion flickered over his expression before raising his eyebrow, "Yes, Isaac?"

I nervously scratched the back of my head as I continued, "Um… Could you teach me how to use Psynergy?"

There was a long pause.

"Isaac."

"Yes?"

Father rested his axe over his shoulder and stared at me firmly. I kept my big grin on my face, hoping that he would not refuse this time.

"How old are you?" he asked suddenly.

I blinked. "Almost fourteen. But –"

"And how old did I say you had to be?"

Slowly, my grin disappeared.

"Fifteen. But I'm –"

"You're not fifteen yet. So you still have a year to go. Now how many times do I have to say that again?"

"But I'm –"

"How many times must I repeat myself?"

There was a long pause as disappointment took hold of me. I stared into his brown eyes with a small pout and he gave me a tiny smirk. Finally, I just shrugged, knowing well that Garet was right.

"Just wait until you're fifteen, son," said my father as he brought his axe forward and continued chopping wood.

"But I don't want to wait!" I fumed. "I'm ready right now! Felix and Jenna can learn it when they're ready! So why can't I?"

Once again, Father stopped in mid-chop on a log he was on and glanced up at me, "Because that is _their_ parent's rule. This is _my_ rule so wait until you're fifteen." He returned to his labour. Feeling upset and angry, I turned around and left with a deep frown. Garet followed.

The older boy let out a whistle, "Man, your dad's really strict on his rules. Same with mine."

"Hmph," I huffed, annoyed at how many times Father repeatedly denied my request.

When it was time for lunch, I asked my mother if I could eat over at Garet's for I did not want to face my father for the rest of the day.

Shortly after the meal, the two of us went to Felix and Jenna's home and heard the news: their parents were going to teach them Psynergy the next day. I glowered at the siblings in jealousy but when Jenna invited Garet and I to come and watch, I felt a little better.

The girl was evidently happy. With her auburn eyes sparkling so brightly, she skipped to everyplace we went. Felix, on the other hand, didn't appear as happy as Jenna but I knew by the look of his face that he was hiding his excitement.

By evening, storm clouds had covered the peak of Mt. Aleph and darkened the sky. It was strange… It had been a clear day with hardly any clouds or wind. Thunder could be heard and rain began to fall, breaking up the wooden sword duel between Felix and Garet while Jenna and I watched.

Saying quick goodbyes, we all departed for home. I was anxious that evening for I could not wait to see Jenna and Felix practice their Psynergy skills the next day.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Isaac, wake up"

Someone was shaking me awake.

"Please, dear, wake up!"

Groggily, I opened my eyes to see my mother looking down at me with worry plastered over her features. Immediately, I was fully awake. "What –" I began but was soon cut off by a crack of thunder.

"Hurry, Isaac! The village is in danger; we need to get of here!" Before I could comprehend what in Venus she was talking about, she pulled me out of bed. "Gather only what you need," she told me as I quickly dressed.

After throwing on my tunic I asked her, "What's going on, Mom? Why are we in danger?"

She creased her brow as she frantically tied my cloak, (which she had recently taken off the hook with her Psynergy), around me. "It's this storm. A large boulder on Mt. Aleph has fallen and is heading for Vale," she explained grimly. "The elders are trying their best to hold it back for as long as they can so the villagers can escape!"

At first, I was taken by shock before fear began to crawl up my senses. "W-What?" was all I could muster as I stared dumbly at Mother.

"There's no time to explain, Isaac," she said urgently, "We need to go, _now_!"Again, she dragged me with her then stopped at the stairway. "Do you have everything you need?"

I took a quick glance around my room and nodded after seeing nothing important to bring along.

"Good. A lost possession can be replaced. A lost life can't." We descended the stairs in haste, hearing my father call for us at the bottom.

"Dora! Isaac! Hurry! The boulder could fall any second now!" he warned, hurrying back outside. I was confused at both my parents' different description of the situation. So the boulder _hasn't_ fallen yet, which would be logical since I was still alive and not crushed under.

I followed Mother into the rain. Wind and water struck my face as soon as I took the first step out the door. Thunder rumbled above while lightning flashed in the dark clouds that covered the entire sky.

Father was waiting outside, completely drenched to the bone. "Kyle…" Mother began, eyeing Father with deep concern. "The boulder… will they be able to stop it?"

Father shook his head, giving both Mother and I a frown. "I don't know, Dora," he answered truthfully. "The elders will not be able to hold it for long… Hurry, take Isaac and head to the Plaza."

"What about you?" Mother cried, "Aren't you coming?"

Father walked up the path and stopped. "I'm going to help evacuate the other villagers."

"Wait, Kyle, let me help you!" She started in his direction, but Father quickly stopped her.

"No! It's too dangerous! Please, just take Isaac to the Plaza!"

I frowned at him. "Dad…" I moaned, afraid that he would not escape in time. I, too, wanted to help… but neither my Psynergy nor my strength was strong enough to aid any villagers in need.

Mother shook her head and faced me. "Isaac is old enough to go to the Plaza by himself. Right, Isaac?"

I hesitated before giving a slight nod. Indeed I could go to the Plaza alone; I did it many times to run errands. It was just that I did not want to leave my parents until I knew they were safe with me.

With an assuring smile, Mother nodded back. "Okay Isaac," she began, "I'm going to help your father. Now head to the Plaza. We'll meet you shortly, okay?"

"I... Okay. Be careful!" I hollered over the wind and thunder. She waved to indicate she would and headed off with my father.

I watched them disappear from my sight before turning around to head for the Plaza. Soaked completely from head to toe in a matter of seconds, I shook from the cold as well as from fear.

_A boulder, huh?_

A stupid boulder was going to crush Vale… _Impossible!_ But it truly could happen…

I started down the stairs when suddenly a tremor shook the earth and chunks of rock rained down before me, smashing the stairway to pieces.

Gasping at the frightful fact at how close I was to getting crushed by falling debris, I scampered away from the unusable stairs. There was no other way down from where I was so I had to take the other route I knew.

I ran past my house and passed Garet's empty home. I stopped when I saw Garet, struggling to pull a large chest with him. Quirking an eyebrow, I quickly ran up to him. "Garet, what are you doing? We have to get out of here!"

He looked at me, panic written all over his face. "I can't leave my stuff!" he cried, pulling the rope as hard as he could.

"Forget about your stuff!" I yelled. "We have to go! We can't take the stairs down there." I pointed past my house. "We'll have to take the long way."

I grabbed his arm and pulled him away with me.

"But… my valuables are in there!"

"Garet, do you want to get yourself killed? We don't have time!"

With a growl, the redhead gave in and nodded. "I guess you're right…"

"Come on!"

We ran across the bridge only to freeze from a deafening crack coming from the mountain. I stood frozen when a huge boulder, the size of a house, came crashing down Mt. Aleph only to be stopped by four elders standing in its path. With their Psynergy, the elders created a barrier to keep the large boulder at bay. But from the strained looks on the elders' faces, it did not seem like they could hold it forever.

"Ugh!" one of the elder's cried. "It's too heavy!"

"If we run out of Psynergy, Vale will be destroyed!" another exclaimed.

"We got keep this up until the villagers are safe!"

I watched in horror with Garet, feeling completely helpless. I wanted to help… I truly did. But I was too weak.

One of the elders fell on one knee in exhaustion. He turned around and saw us with wide eyes. "Hurry boys! Run! Get out of here!" he hollered.

"Isaac! The boulder's coming! Let's go!" Garet ran. So did I.

We ran as fast as we could. When we reached our usual meeting spot but I was stricken back at the boulders that had broken the fence and protective barrier. No longer was anyone able to enter the cave. Ignoring the sight, I continued to follow Garet. We kept running all the way to Felix's home.

I heard Jenna scream.

"Felix!"

"Hang on, Felix!" It was Father.

Feeling my stomach clench at the thought of something terrible had happened to one of my friends, I rushed to the scene. Felix was _in_ the raging river, clinging onto a trapped log for dear life. Eyes closed tightly, I could see Felix trembling in the cold water.

Garet and I ran up to the riverside, to get a better look. My parents, Jenna and her parents were desperately trying to save the boy in the water. Father threw a rope but it did not reach Felix.

With a yelp, the boy lost his hold and was pulled under. I cried out his name in horror. No… it couldn't have happened… One of my best friends had been…

I heard Jenna sob from the deck and Garet whimper beside me.

Then, as if a miracle had occurred, the head of Felix emerged from the surface, gasping for air. Relief washed over me when I saw that my friend was still alive.

"Isaac!" It was Mother, she and the others had seen us. "What are you doing here? Get to the Plaza!" she cried.

I was about to answer but Father interjected. "Dora," he began, giving Mother a firm stare, "go with Jenna and find someone who can help us. I've used all of my Psynergy helping the other villagers."

Hesitating for only a moment, she nodded in response and took Jenna's hand. They came out the front door. Mother was evidently worn out from exhausting her Psynergy while Jenna was holding back her tears.

"I'm going up north to see if I can find anyone. Isaac, Garet, and Jenna, go to the Plaza and find someone who has Psynergy to help us. Understand?"

We nodded. She went north while the three of us headed south.

Jenna was in the lead. As we crossed the bridge I saw her glance sideways at her brother. I did as well, hoping that Felix would hang on for a little bit longer.

"We have to hurry!" the girl urged, sprinting much faster than I could since I was tired from having to run earlier.

At the Plaza, most of the evacuated villagers were gathered around the Psynergy Stone.

"Help! My brother fell in the river!" Jenna cried, once we reached the large, purple crystal. "We need someone with Psynergy to help us!"

The Mayor, Garet's grandfather, heard the news and rushed towards us. "What? Little Felix has fallen into the river? Brian! Hurry! Felix needs help!"

The one named Brian was a muscular man. Having just finished replenishing his Psynergy from the brilliant stone, the man leapt over to us.

"All right," he said, giving a confident smile to Jenna. "I have enough Psynergy to save your brother, kid."

Garet's grandfather placed a firm hand over my shoulder. "Isaac, lead Brian to Felix," he told me.

"Y-Yes, sir," I mumbled, trying to catch my breath.

"I'm coming too!" said Garet and Jenna at the same time. The Mayor looked reluctant before I turned and led the way. I heard him protest against Garet's decision to come along, but that didn't stop my friend from running right behind me.

I led Brian to where Felix was as fast as I could. We had reached the bridge and, thank the heavens, the boy was still there.

"Mom! Dad!" Jenna called out, "We're back!"

"Jenna?"

Mother saw us on the bridge. "Did you find anyone?"

Brian stepped up, "I'm here to help."

"Hurry, get down here!"

We went down the stairs and stood beside Mother where each of us prayed that our new-found helper could save Felix. Taking in a deep breath, Brian focused his Psynergy to cast a spell but his concentration was quickly broken by a thunderous cracking sound that came from above.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as I saw every detail of what happened next…

The horror on Father's face… The falling boulder… Jenna's parents… and Felix…

_Dad…_

_No!_ I closed my eyes tightly, not wanting to see the terrible fate in front of me. I heard someone scream beside me but I did not know who. A deafening sound of cracking wood and splashing water came after as time sped up again. The feeling of a sudden heavy downpour of cold water made me cringe and tremble at the nightmare that had played out before my closed eyes.

I stiffened as I strained my ears to hear for voices; voices to indicate that Father and them were okay. However, it was awfully silent despite the sound of rain and running water.

Slowly, I opened my eyes and saw what I did not want to see: The dock was gone; completely destroyed. Father was gone. Jenna's parents were gone. So was Felix.

I was breathless and deep inside I felt terribly ill. Someone started to cry. _I_ wanted to cry too.

_No…_ I shook my head vigorously, not believing what I saw before me. They had to be alive…

I ran as fast as I could in search for help. Father… all of them… they needed help!

Unwanted tears blinded my vision and I hastily wiped them away. I had to get to the Plaza! Ignoring the strain in my legs, I ran with determination to find someone – anyone – who could save my father.

"Only the two of us survived…" said a voice, stopping me in my tracks. I gulped for air as I searched for the speaker.

"Who could have known that Sol Sanctum could unleash such power!" said another voice, discretely belonging to a female.

I listened intently to the voices, finally realizing that they were coming from the ledge above me. They had mentioned Sol Sanctum… What were they talking about? Who were they?

"It's amazing that we were spared…" the man said, bitterness evident in his tone.

"That switch must have been a trap…" said the woman with a snarl.

"It created such a powerful storm!" I heard the man growl.

I gasped, soaking up all the information that led to one damn explanation: _They_ were the ones who started everything… _They _were the ones who created the storm.Fuming with anger, I clenched my fists so tightly that my knuckles turned white. It was because of them, my father is… Father is…

"Who would have known that Alchemy could possess such power…" the woman continued.

"We mustn't fail next time," the man said seriously.

The woman shortly laughed, "Next time, we'll certainly –"

"Isaac! Wait for me!"

_Garet! _Damn it, _they_ must have heard him too…

I was right; above the ledge the two speakers appeared. They took one look at me before dropping down in my path. I was surprised at their appearance for they did not look like ordinary humans. Nor friendly…

Eyes of red glared right at me; their cold stare had frozen my body in fear. _Evil_ was how I could describe the feeling that came from the pair of strangers. The blonde female, her skin a light pink, held a dangerous-looking scythe in her hand, indicating that she was capable of killing me… if she wanted to. The man, on the other hand, carried a large glimmering sword which also indicated that he could kill me as well… if he wanted to.

"Were you eavesdropping on us?" the man hissed, eyes seeming to glow in ferocity of the question.

I jumped and backed away. The only answer I could give was shaking my head 'no'.

Garet slowly came up behind me, "Isaac… They look scary…" he whispered.

The two strangers glanced at each other and nodded. With a tenacious smile, the woman pointed at me and said, "You little brat, forget everything you heard. Or…"

"Or we'll help you forget!" the man finished for her.

Surprised by their sudden attack, I had no time to react when they rushed at us. The woman attacked first, knocking Garet over the head with the handle of her weapon. With a small cry of pain, the boy collapsed face-first into the ground and didn't move.

Before my fear could turn to rage at what she had done, I saw a glimpse of the blue-skinned man in the corner of my eye before feeling something heavy slam into my head. Pain blinded my sight and all I saw was complete darkness. What I felt was my body falling and after that… I did not know.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Since I had written everything from before with incorrect information, I had completely redone this entire chapter. Be warned, there are spoilers for those who _still_ had not completed The Lost Age!

**Chapter 3**

I felt cold. Very cold. Pain was throbbing in my head and I felt extremely weak. I heard whispering in the distance. Or was it close by? I couldn't really tell through the fog in my mind.

I felt a hand on my forehead. Slowly, I opened my eyes, hoping it was Mother, but saw instead a strange looking old woman. She smiled softly at me; her unusual red eyes portrayed a kindness in her.

"Are you feeling all right, dear?" she asked in a gentle tone.

In awe of the lady's appearance, (pale blue skin, graying red hair and pointed ears), I was speechless. I had a sudden feeling that I was not in Vale anymore. Although it was dark within the room I was in, the meager amount of light from a single candle was enough for me to see that I was in a cave-like place.

"W-Where…" was all I could croak out.

The lady hushed quietly and reached for a bowl of water on the table beside my bed.

There were footsteps approaching and I heard a familiar and welcoming voice. "Felix? Is he awake?" my father asked. A shadow loomed over the woman but when I eyes adjusted to the dark light, I could see it was indeed him.

I drank the warm water offered to me and cleared my throat. "D-Dad," I said, grateful to see him again after…

Suddenly, I was confused. I did not know where or how I came to be. Quickly, I sat up but soon fell back when a wave of dizziness struck me.

"Stay in bed, son," I heard Father address me. "You haven't fully recovered yet."

_Fully recovered from what? _I wanted to say, but found that I was too exhausted to speak.

The old woman chuckled beside him. "Neither have you. You need to rest too, my dear," she said to my father.

Father lightly laughed. "I'm feeling fine now, but I will get more rest later."

"Dad," I moaned, after I regained some strength. I looked at my father, seeing nothing but a blur of his face. "What… happened? Where are we?"

There was a short pause. "It's not important right now. Get some more sleep," he finally answered. Even though I was not entirely capable of thinking clearly, I _knew_ that something was wrong. "I'll leave you –"

"Wait, Dad," I called out, trying to raise my hand to stop him but discovered that I had no strength to even lift a finger. He waited for me to continue. "Why… Why won't you tell me? Where's Mom? Where's Jenna?"

"Your mother is sleeping and you should too. I'll… I'll tell you everything once you get better. I promise." I heard him turn to leave.

"Wait," I said, stopping him once more. "What about Jenna?" I blinked tiredly at his shadow when he did not answer me. "Dad?"

He hesitated. "Jenna is… safe," he replied, but his tone was not steady like before. Instead, it shook with a hint of sadness. "She's safe in Vale, Felix."

"In… Vale?"

The lady by my bedside hushed softly as she placed a hand over my eyes. "Get some rest, my dear," she had said as I felt a soothing warmness emanate from her palm. All the pain disappeared as I slipped away from consciousness and into a slumber.

-0-

"Isaac, Garet, and Jenna," Kraden addressed his students with a polite smile. "Today, we will determine what kind of an Adept you are."

I cocked my head to the side. "But I already know what I am," I exclaimed to the old man. Garet gave me a sideways look while Jenna… she continued to stare at the ground in front of her.

It had been a year since the incident. Much had changed in and around Vale. Jenna, having lost her entire family, now resided with the couple that ran the inn. They were more than happy to take her in as their own child.

Jenna had been taking the whole incident very hard. It was like part of her had disappeared along with her family. No more was she bright and cheerful and making fun of Garet did not seem to be one of her favorite things to do anymore. She had believed that she was completely alone…

Many villagers tried to raise her spirit by giving her gifts, but that did not do any good. It only made her depressed. Garet gave her a flower every day, hoping she would feel better sometime soon. I knew she did not want to be pitied so the way I could cheer her up was to be with her everyday.

I kept reminding her that she was not really alone because Garet and I were still with her.

'_We're your friends, Jenna,' I told her as she quietly cried beside the remains of her home._

'_Yeah,' Garet agreed, placing a hand on her shoulder. 'We'll always be here for you. You'll never be alone.'_

_It had seemed like she did not hear a word we said. But when she pulled both of us in a hug, I thought wrong. 'You guys…' she sobbed. 'Don't ever leave me…'_

'_We promise,' I told her, holding back my own tears. _

_Garet tightened his embrace. 'We'll never leave.'_

I guess I had felt the same way as her but to a smaller scale. The absence of a father had made me feel lonely as well. Although I still had Mother with me, I couldn't help but feel alone whenever at home.

Sleep was barely part of my life. I always had dreams – _nightmares_ – of the horrible incident. The memory of it would not go away. It was not only the incident that wounded me deeply but the unexplainable event that took place after witnessing the tragedy. I had remembered… meeting someone when I left for help. Who it was, my memory would not tell. But I knew, deep down inside, that who I ran into was important. Why? I didn't know… And for not knowing the reason made me frustrated whenever I looked back into the past.

A few months after _that _day, an old but wise sage named Kraden came to our village. Hailing from an unknown town called _Tolbi_, he had introduced himself as a scholar in search for information and facts on something called '_Alchemy' _(which I had soon learned was somewhat similar to Psynergy). His research had led him to the village of Vale where he wanted to further study Alchemy for Sol Sanctum was somehow linked to it.

However, the villagers did not allow the old man to enter the Sanctum; not just yet. He had to show that the villagers could trust him. So in exchange, Kraden had promised to share his knowledge of Alchemy to anyone in the village.

_Education_, he had called it.

What was surprising was that Kraden had never heard of or _seen_ Psynergy before and was overwhelmed with excitement when he saw one of the villagers perform a simple skill such as opening a door without touching the knob itself.

He had once said that the world consisted of the four Elements; earth, fire, wind and water. Coinciding with the elements were beings known to be called '_Adepts'_ that were able to wield special powers of each element. There were four types of Adepts that existed in all of Weyward; Venus of the Earth element, Mars of fire, Jupiter of wind and Mercury of water.

I was awfully interested in Kraden's knowledge of the world that I took up his lessons on Alchemy when many of the villagers were skeptical of his beliefs. Garet came along for he had shown a great interest as well, while Jenna… the two of us made sure she came to keep her company.

Sitting before the sage's newly refurbished cottage, (which the Mayor had lent Kraden), I, along with Jenna and Garet, watched the old man chuckle softly at my reply. Lightly, he pushed his spectacles up the bridge of his nose and looked at me with curiosity.

"Do you now, Isaac?" he asked amusingly. "Can you show me what type of an Adept you are?"

Rubbing my head in embarrassment, I nodded. "Yeah… Well, I can make grass grow," I replied in shame, for I could only perform such a weak Psynergy skill.

However, Kraden seemed intrigued by my answer. "Indeed, do show me your ability."

I frowned at him, but insisted on showing my skill to him when he gave me an assuring smile. "Well, okay," I mumbled as I pulled some grass out of their roots to form a dirt hole.

I felt Jenna and Garet staring at me from both sides for they had never seen me use Psynergy before. Drawing in a deep breath, I placed my hand over the soil and closed my eyes in concentration. Mother had told me once that Psynergy came from within your heart. To summon it, you had to call for it to aid you by focusing your feelings and thoughts into the power.

That was what I tried to do. I quietly called forth the power of Venus within me and directed it to the earth below my palm. Gasps were heard when I felt the energy leave my hand.

"That's so cool, Isaac!" Garet cried in awe. I opened my eyes, expecting to see nothing but grass at where the dirt hole once was. However, instead of blades of green in the dirt, there were tiny flowers.

I blinked in confusion before realizing that my Psynergy was improving… at a slow pace. Jenna brightened up and smiled at what I had done. "Amazing!" she said, eyeing the white flowers with her auburn eyes. "I wonder if I could do that…"

Kraden stepped closer to us and leaned over to take a better look at my creation. "Well done, my boy! That is quite impressive," he praised. "There is no doubt that you are a Venus Adept." Standing back up, he patted me over the shoulder. "If you continue to use your Psynergy daily, you could develop your power into stronger forms!"

When Kraden had finished that sentence, I tensed up, realizing what he had said. _Psynergy_…

I needed to train my Psynergy so that someday I would be strong enough to protect everyone. My fifteenth birthday was coming near, so it was time that I – no, _we _learned to use it.

I glanced over at Garet who was now poking at my flowers while Jenna picked at them. "Hey guys," I began, catching their attention. "We should start training together."

Jenna's expression faded from happiness to sadness. "I don't know how… I don't even know what Adept I am," she said. The duty of teaching her Psynergy had once belonged to her parents. I knew it was hard for her to go on and accept the fact that neither her father nor mother could pass on their skills to her.

Gently, I nudged her and offered a small smile. "Don't worry, I'm sure Kraden can help, right?"

The wise sage nodded. "Why, yes! Determining an Adept of a particular type is quite elementary," he explained. "Take Garet for example."

"Huh?" The redhead looked at Kraden and blinked.

"Garet, do tell me about your family. Your mother and father… could you tell me what types of Psynergy they use?"

The boy looked thoughtful for a moment before shrugging. "I can't really tell…" he answered meekly. "All I see them do is move stuff around. Not like how Isaac's Mom can grow fruit in her garden."

"Hmm, I see. Interesting." Kraden nodded, amused at Garet's comment.

"Oh, I know!" I exclaimed, having to remember something. "I've seen your sister light a candle once with her hand."

The redhead pondered at that and nodded. "Oh right, that time you were over for supper…"

"With that I can assume you are a Mars Adept, Garet," the sage proclaimed.

Dark brown eyes gleamed up at the old man. "Are you sure?" Garet asked. "Because… now that I think about it, my grandpa once told me stories of how he could shake the earth and mountains with his Psynergy when he was young."

Kraden seemed puzzled by the boy's remark. "Your grandfather is capable of Venus Psynergy?" he pondered. "That's quite fascinating." He slowly paced back and forth in thought. "It seems that the people here in Vale are of either Mars or Venus Adepts."

He continued to pace, thinking deeply and mumbling quietly to himself. I mentally laughed at Kraden. Many times he would completely forget about us whenever he fell into his 'pondering state'.

Jenna nudged me with her elbow. "Do you think I'm Mars? Or Venus?" she asked in a whisper.

I shrugged at her. "I wonder if you can be both…" I suggested with a grin.

"That would be cool," Garet replied, nodding at the thought. "Anyway, since Kraden's doing _that_ again, wanna go train our Psynergy? Isaac, you're teaching us."

"Yeah, Isaac," Jenna agreed, showing me my flowers she had picked. "Teach us how to do this."

Grinning cockily, I stood up. "Sure… but I'll probably be bad at showing you guys how," I said truthfully.

"I'm sure you'll do fine," Jenna assured as she rose to her feet. Soon, her smile faltered into a sad one. "I… I want to be able to show everyone that I'm strong so they'll leave me alone."

"Jenna…" Garet murmured, frowning at the girl. "What do you mean?"

"What I meant was… everyone always gives me _that_ look whenever they see me. It's not like I want to be pitied."

"Well, neither do I," I said, casting down my stare to the ground. "Everyone acts differently around me too, but…" I gave my friends a confident smile. "I don't want that. So let's go show them how strong we can be."

My friends returned my grin with their own. "Let's do it!" they cried in unison.

The three of us turned to Kraden. "Master Kraden," I called out, but he did not seem to hear me. "We're gonna go now. We'll see you tomorrow!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The hot autumn sun burned my back as I worked on the rain-damaged roof of my home. Early this morning, it had collapsed noisily, abruptly waking me out of bed. Ever since breakfast, I had been tending the huge hole alone since I did not want Mother to strain herself with the labour.

Besides, it was a good way to train my Psynergy.

"Isaac," Mother called from down below, "Are you done yet?"

Without moving from where I stood, I aligned a loose wooden beam parallel to the others with my power before tying it with rope using my hands. "Just about!" I responded. Next, I concentrated my Psynergy again and directed it to the pile of hay lying on the roof. The hay lifted off the surface and I moved it over the hole. I released my hold on the dead grass where it fell onto the wooden support beams. Then I packed the hay manually before tying it down. "There, all done," I breathed in triumph for having to fix our home for the first time.

I heard my mother climb up the ladder to check on me. With her blue eyes, she scanned the roof carefully while examining each area with her foot. "Why, you've done a fantastic job, Isaac," she praised with a smile. "You patched it up pretty good. Your father wouldn't have done it better."

Flinching, I hastily looked away from her smile and simply nodded.

Mother was quick to notice my behaviour and asked me what was wrong.

"It's nothing," I replied, shaking my head while still avoiding her gaze.

There was a pause. "It's about your father, isn't it?"

"No… Well, maybe… Yeah…"

In the corner of my eye, I saw her approach me. "I thought so," she quietly replied, placing a hand on my shoulder. "You, Garet and Jenna have been studying and training very hard on Psynergy. Is it because if you were stronger you could have made a difference?"

I nodded but did not look at her. "If I was stronger, Father would still be alive…" I shook from the bitter hate inside me; the hate I had for myself for being weak. "If only –"

"Isaac," Mother interrupted, placing her other hand on my other shoulder. "There was nothing you could've done… I felt helpless too… Everyday I had wished that there was something I could have done to prevent that boulder from…" She paused and let out a sigh. "I… didn't want to believe that Kyle was really gone. But, the past is the past, Isaac. There was nothing you or I could have done three years ago."

Slowly, I raised my head to look at her and saw tears forming in Mother's blue eyes. "Don't cry, mom. I'm sorry…" I apologized, having realized that I had been acting like a selfish jerk. I knew Mother had missed Father more than me but I had never shown her any support over the past years. "I'm sorry," I said again, embracing her in a hug.

She stifled a sob. "Isaac, I truly felt alone, but… I still have you," she exclaimed, pulling away to rest her hands over my shoulders once more. "You give me hope in life."

"Mom…" I was speechless at her words but I managed a small smile. I wanted to tell her that she gave me hope in my life too. If I had lost Mother on that day as well… I didn't know how I could manage.

She wiped her tears away and was about to say something else but someone interrupted.

"Excuse me, ma'am." It was Jenna. Mother was startled but moved aside for the girl to climb onto the roof. Garet was right behind her. When Jenna saw the state my mother was in, she quickly looked apologetic. "I'm sorry, did we intrude?"

Mother shook her head, dabbing at the last tears in her eyes. "Oh no! Oh no!" she said, giving the two a welcomed smile. "Hello, Jenna. Hello, Garet."

My friends returned her smile. "Good afternoon, ma'am," Jenna greeted then nodded at me. "Are you done yet?"

"Pretty much," I answered while looking at my craftsmanship I did on the roof.

"Oh? Where are you going today?" my mother inquired.

I grinned along with Garet while Jenna formed an exited smile. Today was _the_ day that the three of us had waited for: The elders had finally given Kraden permission to enter Sol Sanctum. As students of the sage, we were allowed to come along with the elders accompanying us.

"We're going to Mt. Aleph with Master Kraden!" the redhead exclaimed. "Can you believe it, guys? We're finally going _inside_ Sol Sanctum _with_ permission. Not like last time when we had to sneak our way –"

"Garet!" I hissed just before he finished blurting out our secret. Taking a wary glance towards my mother, I saw her look puzzled at Garet. She raised an eyebrow and turned her eyes to me.

"Isaac, what is Garet talking about?" she asked suspiciously.

"Nothing," I quickly answered, giving her an innocent smile. I peered over at my friends for support.

"Uh, yeah. It's nothing, ma'am," Jenna added with a laugh. "Garet's just joking around right, Garet?" She nudged the boy in the side with her elbow as she spoke.

Garet faked a cough and laughed along with Jenna. "Um, yeah," he said, scratching the back of his head nervously. "I mean, we didn't have to um… sneak our way into… uh… somewhere…." he trailed off.

I could have sworn my jaw had hit the ground as I stared dumbfounded at the older boy. Jenna glowered at the redhead and shook her head vigorously.

"Oops…" Garet mumbled before breaking into a nervous laugh.

"Isaac," Mother began, giving me a stern glare. "Did you –"

"We never really entered Sol Sanctum before, Mom. I swear!" I exclaimed.

She continued to watch me then sighed. "You kids and your games," she groaned. "Anyway, you three better get going or you'll be late. Isaac, we're going to discuss about this tonight, understand?"

Frowning, I managed to give her a nod. Sending Garet a death threat when he glanced over at me, I followed him down the ladder.

"Man, sorry about that," the redhead quickly apologized when we were a distance away from my house. "I didn't mean to say that…"

I continued to glare at him. "She's probably going to give me hell tonight," I muttered. "Thanks, Garet. _Thanks_."

"Yeah, way to go," Jenna added, shaking her head. "She's gonna go tell your parents about it too, most likely."

Garet's head snapped up. "No way… Do you think she would?" he frantically asked.

Smirking, I gave him a sideways look. "Of course, she would," I said teasingly. "I won't be the only one getting a lecture."

The redhead moaned in exasperation, slowing his pace. "Aw… I know Gramps will eat my head off if he knew."

Giggling, Jenna elbowed the boy and walked ahead. "Don't be a wuss," she told him, placing her hands on her hips. "You're a _Mars_ Adept, for crying out loud. You shouldn't be afraid of getting in trouble."

Garet huffed and crossed his arms. "Easy for you to say," he grumbled, "You're lucky that… I mean, never mind…" He quickly stopped himself.

Jenna stared at him, a hint of sadness flashed over her eyes but it disappeared as fast as it had came. "Come on, why are you two just standing there? Let's go!" she said, running ahead.

I gave Garet a hard stare and he looked away. "I didn't mean to say that," he said softly.

"Well," I began, hating to see him look so upset. "What's said was said. _Try_ not to blurt anything out for the rest of the day. Like how you broke Kraden's telescope and claimed that it was like that the first place."

"Hey! I did _not_ break the stupid thing! It fell apart in my hand!"

"Hey, you guys!" Jenna came back, looking annoyed at us. "You coming or what? We're going to be late!"

I laughed at the redhead as we both ran to catch up to Jenna. "You _tossed_ the thing to the ground. How is that 'falling apart' in your hand?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow.

The Mars Adept made an attempt to swat me over the head but I nimbly ducked. We joked around as we traversed to Kraden's cottage.

We were about to round a corner when I heard voices on the other side. Stopping naturally, (since the three of us loved to eavesdrop on villagers), I motioned my friends to pause and listen.

"This is useless," I heard a man spat. "They know little of Sol Sanctum's mysteries."

_That voice..._ It sounded familiar…

'Sol Sanctum?' Jenna mouthed questioningly. She wanted to take a peek around the corner but I held her back and shook my head.

I silently gestured for both Garet and Jenna to stay quiet.

The man was speaking to another, "The elders of Vale must not permit anyone to enter it, not even Kraden."

"That old man…" came a woman's reply. "Can we use him?"

I felt a chill run down my spine. There was something _very_ familiar with the situation we were in. _Have I… Have I done this before?_ I pondered, furrowing my brow.

"We can use him," the man answered, bitterly. "He has more knowledge than us about Sol Sanctum."

The woman snorted. "But he's a stubborn fool!"

"Cunning as well…"

Garet leaned in close to me, "What are they talking about?" he whispered, dabbing a thumb at the corner.

I simply shrugged, intently listening to the ongoing conversation.

"We should force him to –" the woman was abruptly cut off.

"I hear someone…"

I froze. My friends did as well when we saw the two speakers appear in front of us. Their appearance was uncanny as well as intimidating. Fierce red eyes – eyes I had seen before in dreams – gleamed at us with vicious intent. A sense of _evil_ shrouded the beings that stood before me… it was an evil I knew I had felt _that_ day… This familiarity… These feelings were telling me something but I could not connect.

The man took a step forward, his expression stern and hostile. "What are you kids doing?" he snarled, baring his inhuman teeth.

I flinched back and noticed Jenna did the same. Garet, standing behind me remained transfixed at the unknown pair. None of us said a word.

"You were eavesdropping on us, weren't you?" the woman accused, crossing her arms.

I quickly shook my head.

She narrowed her eyes into piercing orbs before smirking. "Maybe I'll be nice and take your word on it." She then looked directly at me and said, "So Kraden was meeting with you…"

All I could do in response was nod. In truth, I was afraid of them. Fear was welling up inside me and I couldn't control it.

Jenna, (damn, was she brave…), gave a nervous reply, "We're meeting him right now…"

The man glared at her. "Is this meeting very important to you?"

"Well… it is…" I said, gathering the little courage I had to speak.

The man then stared at me. A sly smile formed over his pale lips. "Well, if it's that important then…" Surprisingly, he stepped aside, "Go…"

I blinked, momentarily shocked.

"Y-You're letting us go?" Jenna asked warily.

The woman seemed hesitant to release us. "Saturos," she named the man, "Are you sure we should let them go?"

Now known as Saturos, the man looked at her and grinned, "Menardi, we shouldn't delay these children any further," he told his partner. "I'm pretty sure their very important meeting with Kraden cannot wait."

The one named Menardi did not appear to be pleased by the other's decision but abided to his will and moved out of our way.

I hesitated to move but a shove from Garet got me walking cautiously pass the two watching strangers. The redhead let out a sigh of relief when we reached the stairs leading to Kraden's cottage.

"Man," he groaned, his expression seemed troubled. "There's something about those two that I can't quite put my finger on… Like… I know them from somewhere."

I snapped my head in his direction. "You have that feeling too?" I exclaimed, seeing him nod. Deep down, I was relieved that I was not the only one that had the strange feeling of déjà vu.

Jenna pursed her lip and gave both of us an odd look. "What're you guys talking about? I've never seen them in Vale before," she said, stating the obvious.

I rolled my eyes at her. "I don't know why _you_ don't feel what we feel," I said with a snort.

She crossed her arms and gave me a sullen stare. "Must be male hormones," she shot back with a smirk.

"But, you know," Garet cut in before I could reply, "I don't know why, but it's really bothering me." He rubbed the back of his head. "It's making my scar hurt."

From hearing those last few words, I straightened up and frowned at him. The scar he spoke of was from a terrible wound he had gotten three years ago. It was from that time, when the two of us were found unconscious. I had a painful bump on my temple while Garet received a bloodied bruise to his head. No one had witnessed what had happened and neither of us could remember what had happened.

It appeared like we were attacked. Nearby monsters were blamed and had been quickly hunted down by the villagers the day after. But I knew – no, we both knew that mere Vermins or Bats could not have injured us severely.

So, the possible explanation was that _someone_ had attacked us. Someone who was strong. Someone… who had a reason to subdue us.

Images of my dreams flashed before my eyes as I thought deeply into the mystery. Those eyes of red I had seen in my nightmares, I knew they belonged to those strange beings. The only possible conclusion was…

"Garet," I began, giving him a serious stare. "I think I know what happened."

His brown eyes widened while Jenna looked between us with confusion clearly on her face. "What? What are you talking about? Why do you always leave _me_ out of everything?" she growled.

"Tell me later," the redhead quietly whispered before faking a smirk at the other Mars Adept. "It's nothing. It's about a prank we pulled a long time ago. We didn't know what happened with the result… so…"

Disappointed by his answer, Jenna shook her head and groaned before walking ahead. "Whatever," I heard her mumble.

At the top of the stairs, Kraden could clearly be seen pacing back and forth before his home. Obviously, he was deep in his pondering state again. Mumbling to himself, the Alchemy sage did not notice our arrival.

"Master Kraden!" Jenna called, waving at him to catch his attention. There was no response from the old man and Jenna groaned in annoyance. "_Master _Kraden!"

From the girl's loud outcry, the sage abruptly turned in her direction in surprise. "Jenna? Why… I didn't notice you have all arrived!" he said, looking apologetic. "Do forgive me."

"It's all right," I told him. "What did those two strangers want with you?" I asked, seeing the man flinch before creasing his brow in a deep frown.

"I don't know," he answered, shaking his head. "But they _do_ know a lot about Sol Sanctum… More than the elders of Vale." Letting out a sigh, he stroked his grey beard in thought. "They had mentioned something about the elements," he continued. "Earth, fire, water and wind…"

I quirked an eyebrow at his explanation; confused at what Kraden was talking about. Glancing over at my friends, they both shrugged; obviously feeling the same way as I.

"They had spoken of Elemental Stars – four of them. Saying they are the _key_."

"Huh? Keys for what?" Garet asked, his expression bewildered.

Shaking his head, Kraden simply shrugged. "That, I do not know. But what I found strange was how they spoke of Sol Sanctum like they had actually _been_ there. Is it not true that the elders must grant permission for anyone to enter?"

We nodded. "We've been told many times that the elders were the only ones who can permit anyone access to the sanctum," I said, having experiencing the elders' many lectures of why going to Mt. Aleph was forbidden.

"Indeed…" the sage replied.

Jenna gasped. "Do you think they _did_ enter Sol Sanctum?" she questioned. "They could be thieves!"

"We should hurry and tell Gramps about them," Garet suggested. "If they _are_ thieves, we can catch them before they get away!" He turned to run but Kraden hollered for him to stop.

"Wait!" The boy stumbled in his step and stopped immediately after. "To consider them thieves would be false," Kraden explained, causing the three of us to stare at him oddly. "If they were thieves, they would not have told me of these _Elemental Stars_."

"Well," I began, crossing my arms. "What should we do about it?"

A small smile formed over the Alchemy sage's lips. "We," he said, "are going to confirm this information they had given me."

"Huh?" "What?" "What do you mean by that?" the three of us asked at the same time.

The smile turned into a wide grin. Kraden adjusted his spectacles and looked at each of us. By the expression upon his face, I _knew_ what the sage was talking about.

"You want to enter Sol Sanctum to look for those Elemental Stars?" I asked and he nodded.

"That'll be easy," Garet said, resting his hands on his hips. "You got permission from the elders –"

"However," Kraden interrupted, "The elders would have to accompany us. If we were to search for those Stars, we would have to be alone."

I blinked at the old man. "Are you saying that we should enter Sol Sanctum by ourselves?"

Again, the sage nodded. "Indeed. You are quite correct, Isaac!"

"_What_!" I cried in disbelief.

Jenna shook her head, "That's impossible…"

"Why would it be?"

"Well…" I murmured, "It's…"

"We're just going to confirm if those two had _actually _been to Sol Sanctum. I think that would be acceptable, right?"

Garet perked up. "I suppose," he said, grinning mischievously. "It's not like we'll be doing anything bad."

Jenna, following the boy's lead, nodded in return. "Yeah! We just gotta keep this a secret between us."

A grin of my own began to spread over my face when the decision was clear. "Then let's do it," I said. "Let's go to Sol Sanctum."

"Excellent!" Kraden exclaimed in joy. "Then it has been decided, my dear students. Our first journey to study the ancient secrets of Alchemy shall begin." He turned to me with a small smile. "Isaac, will you do the honour of leading the way?"

I nearly tripped over my own foot – (though it should have been impossible when I have barely even taken a step) – after he had said that. "_Me_? _Lead_?" I cried, gawking at the sage with wide-eyes.

Kraden simply nodded. "You have proven to be quite a leader amongst your friends, Isaac," he explained, his gentle smile never fading away. "You have aided them in their Psynergy training like a teacher at most times. Do you both not agree?"

Garet laughed and patted me hard on the back. "Master's right, man. If you hadn't shown us how to use Psynergy, we probably wouldn't be as strong as we are now."

"Agreed," said Jenna, punching me lightly on the shoulder. "You're kind of like a teacher to Garet and I, Isaac. So you should be the leader." She then quietly giggled. "Because you-know-who makes the worst decisions and is not qualified to be one."

There was a low growl from the redhead. "_Who_ makes the worst decisions?"

I could only pout when the position of being leader was suddenly handed to me. "You gotta be kidding me…" I groaned, seeing my friends shake their head in belief.

"You're leader, Isaac," Jenna said again, giving me a sullen stare. "We've all agreed."

_Ugh, no way!_ I wanted to say, but found no point in arguing. The female Mars Adept was giving me a look of surreal truth. If I disagreed, she would most likely unleash her fiery wrath upon me and torch my clothes off or something in that manner.

Rubbing my neck, I gave in. "All right… I'll be leader," I mumbled, receiving enlightened grins and smiles from everyone.

"Then let's be off! Oh, wait one moment!" Kraden ran inside his home and came back out shortly carrying a few small pouches.

"What are those for?" I asked, seeing the sage tie four of the bags to his belt.

"These are for if we stumble upon anything important… Now let's begin. Isaac, lead the way." He gestured me to start walking.

Taking a deep breath, I rolled my eyes and began to trek to the Healer's Sanctum. Careful not to seem suspicious to any of the villagers that passed us, we made good time in reaching the stone stairs before the Sanctum. The only hard part was avoiding the monks that often guarded the path to Mt. Aleph.

Laying low, I spotted only one of them, conversing with two of Vale's elders before the Sanctum's door. Those elders were most likely the ones we were supposed to meet. It was impossible to get by them… unless I had a distraction. But what could I use?

Glancing at Garet for an answer, the redhead only shrugged. Jenna then tapped me over the shoulder and pointed up at few small boulders over top the cliff side on the opposite side of the path to Mt. Aleph.

_The boulders!_ Yes! They could be the distraction. Now, if I could get them to fall…

I flashed Jenna a grin of thanks before closing my eyes in concentration. Drawing out my Psynergy into my hand, I then slammed my palm into the ground to force the earth to tremble slightly; just enough to shake loose the large rocks above the cliff.

The monk and elders were first startled by the minor quake before jumping at the sounding of crashing stone. They all ran towards the fallen boulders while we took the opportunity to make a run for it.

Sprinting as fast as I could, I passed the tree and up the stairway that led to the mountain. I looked back, seeing that all of us had made it through. Heart pounding against my chest, I breathed a sigh of relief and turned around to run up the stairs with Jenna and Garet beside me. I didn't want to delay my excitement any longer; I skipped steps to reach the sacred entrance of Sol Sanctum.

"Wow…" was all I could muster at the amazing sight before my eyes. Four pure white statues of goddesses guarded the stone doors of the Sanctum. The peak of Mt. Aleph was too high to see as I craned my neck up from where I stood.

I heard a sound of awe from my friends behind me as well as Kraden's panting. Not able to contain my anxiety further, I ran up to the heavy stone doors and pushed them open… Never to realize that it was my first step to an epic journey.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 **

The heavy, stone doors leading to the sanctum were easy to push open. A rush of wind blew by me before settling into a cool breeze.

Eyes gleaming with awe and anticipation, Kraden sniffed the damp air that blew from inside and walked in.

I couldn't deny how I felt; I was brimming with excitement for having to finally enter the forbidden sanctum. I glanced over at my friends who grinned from ear to ear as they followed Kraden's path.

Inside was not what I had expected; a room filled with shallow, clear blue water was the first astonishing thing about the sanctum. Stone tiles served as stepping stones to cross the pool and Kraden was already halfway across. I quickly followed suit and hopped on the tiles to catch up to the elder man. We came to another entrance and entered once all of us were together.

Within, stone walls, a brilliant shade of dark blue, appeared clean and flawless like the sanctum had never been entered before. For years, perhaps centuries, Mt. Aleph was inaccessible to anyone in Vale or outsiders.

The only way in was to be an elder, of course. Another possible way was to have a strong purpose to enter by negotiating and years of trust in Kraden's case. But for us, another way in was to sneak inside with stealth. (Which this time, actually worked.)

The Alchemy sage breathed deeply at the scent of the sanctum's ancient air. "Magnificent..." he exhaled, examining the carved stone of the walls with his hands. "Every stone in this temple shines with archaic beauty. Come, we must hurry deeper inside!" He ran swiftly ahead much like a child overcome with joy to enter a playground.

"Master Kraden, slow down!" I called, seeing how he practically left us in the dust. He turned around a corner and a sudden cry was heard. "What?" I rushed to see what happened to the old man and saw him backed into a wall by a mere flying Bat. The creature noticed my presence and flew off in fright.

"My, that little beast startled me," the sage exclaimed, brushing loose strands of his grey hair out of his face.

"Are you all right?" I asked, checking him over to make sure he wasn't injured.

He lightly brushed me off. "I'm fine, Isaac. Just a little surprised."

Jenna and Garet caught up to us. "What happened?" they both asked at once.

"There are monsters around," I told them, receiving shocked looks.

Kraden shook his head, slightly confused. "I didn't think there would be monsters roaming about in this sanctum. You children must be careful from now on. We might not know what we could run into…"

I gave the sage an assuring grin. "Don't worry. A few Bats and Mushrooms wouldn't be able to harm us," I replied as I turned to the other boy and smirked.

Garet rested his hands on his hips and straightened up. "Monsters, eh? I'd like to try fighting them," he said, searching around the area.

Jenna snorted at him. "You don't have a weapon," she plainly shot back.

Waving a finger, Garet gave her a sullen stare. "Psynergy, Jenna. _Psynergy_. Let's see who can roast the most monsters in here!" he challenged.

The other Mars Adept crossed her arm and raised an eyebrow before finally forming a grin. "You're on!"

"Hold it! Hold it!" Kraden cut in on their fun. "You two certainly must be careful in here! I don't want any harm to come to this sanctum. Understand? If there are signs of damage, the elders would know that we've been in here on our own!"

The two nodded, still grinning with anticipation. "We know. We know," Jenna told him, "We'll be careful. We'll make sure to only hit the monsters." She elbowed the older boy. "Right, Garet?"

Rolling his eyes, Garet rested his hands behind his head. "Yeah. Yeah. I won't burn anything unnecessary."

Exhaling a breath of relief, Kraden gave them a nod. "Good," he said before turning to me. "Isaac, you as well. I don't want you to use your Psynergy in here."

Disappointment fell over me. "Why not?" I asked, frowning at the old man.

"Because your powers could disrupt the structure of the sanctum! Mild earthquakes could easily destroy the stone walls and you know you wouldn't want that. Correct?"

I mentally cursed at the disadvantage I had. "Yeah…" I mumbled, pouting at the floor.

"Oh, that's too bad, man," Garet patted me on the back. "Just stay behind me and Jenna and we'll take care of things!"

Growling, I shot him a glare which was returned with a grin. I couldn't help but feel jealous at the two Mars Adepts.

When Jenna had found out that she could wield fire Psynergy, she was slightly disappointed for she wanted the power of Venus to create life with her hands.

"_I want to grow flowers like you can do, Isaac," _she had said.

I gave Jenna a silent smile as I followed behind her through the long corridor of the sanctum. The girl before me once envied my power but had grown to love her own after learning what she could do. (Such as threatening me at a higher level whenever I made her mad. Onc time she almost burned my entire shirt off when I dumped a pail of freezing water over her head as a joke.)

Possessing the power of fire, she had accepted her heritage as a Mars Adept.

After Garet discovered that he, as well, was a Mars Adept after accidentally igniting my boots on fire, he took pledge to train with Jenna all the time to master their fire Psynergy together.

Although he was a Mars Adept, Garet was different from Jenna. The redhead had the ability to move objects without touch; which was a trait of Venus Adepts. '_Through heredity, the boy had gained the power from his grandfather_,' Kraden had explained.

"Look! There's another one!" I heard Garet cry when a fifth squealing Vermin appeared.

Both Mars Adepts began to chase the poor critter through the maze-like complex that we had discovered behind a hidden entrance. Kraden's predicament had proven true when we assumingly ran into a dead end of the sanctum.

So there were secret chambers within Sol Sanctum and we had discovered them…

Sighing, I watched my two friends cast fireballs at the running Vermin. Jenna's ball of flame struck the rat first; igniting the little creature into a burning mass. Garet's fireball then knocked it down where it remained unmoving.

It was cruel when I thought about it. Seeing the charred bodies of our enemies was quite unnerving and it left a sick feeling in my stomach.

"Yeah! That's three to two, Garet!" Jenna boasted, giving the redhead a playful punch in the shoulder.

Grumbling, the boy waved her away. "Bah! I'll get the next one," he told her as he searched the area for more monsters.

"Over there!" A pair of Bats were spotted.

I sighed again. Why couldn't _I_ have any fun?

-0-

The sense of nostalgia had been on my mind in the past three years. But now, as I stood atop a high ledge overlooking the village of Vale, I could not help but feel out of place.

Why? It was most likely that I was forced to come back accompanied not with my parents, but with _them_. Held against their will, my mother and father were to remain back in Prox in order to keep me in line on my mission. Despite the brutal conditions that were set, I was determined to not only complete the mission for my parents, but for all of Weyard as well.

Frowning slightly, I watched the four figures walking below; the ones we were to follow. From afar I could not see their faces, but I knew who they all were.

_Jenna…_ I sighed in thought. My sister… She was left all alone.

Was she sad? Did she cry?

I wanted to run up to her and show her that I was alive. But no – I had to keep my emotions inside if I were to complete our mission.

"Stay focused, Felix," Saturos ordered, giving me a sideways look. Arms crossed, he was watching my expression the entire time while we waited for the group below to leave. "Remember what we came here for."

"Understood," was all I said to the man as I turned back to the village. Deep down, I wanted to protest against the two Proxian warriors but if I did, I would endanger not only my own life, but many others. I obeyed Saturos's orders and tried to clear my head of complicating thoughts.

However, one thing that kept lingering in my mind was the fact that I was back home but could not enjoy the feeling of it.

I heard Saturos smirk when the four people disappeared from our sight. "It's time to move," he announced, turning around to the other Proxian. He immediately looked irritated. "Where's Alex?"

Menardi shrugged her shoulders and exhaled a sigh in annoyance. "Beats me," she said as she gathered her belongings. "That fool always disappears. He'll eventually show up."

As if on cue, the aforementioned young man appeared before us out of thin air, (like always). Alex did not seem fazed by the hard glares he was receiving from the two warriors but instead appeared not to notice. "I apologize for being late," he simply told them in his nonchalant tone.

His manner infuriated Menardi. "Where have you been?" she growled.

Saturos quickly interjected Alex's response. "Not now," he hissed. "The children are on their way. We should as well."

Smirking slightly, Alex stepped aside for Saturos to lead the way. As she passed, Menardi shot the aqua-haired boy a glare of annoyance.

Without saying a word, I followed right after her; ignoring the Mercury Adept's calm yet unnerving eyes.

"Felix," I heard him address me from behind; "This is your hometown, isn't it?"

I grimaced at the question and silently nodded.

"I see… Quite a nice little village."

Taking a careful glance back, I noticed his expression was that of admiration. Alex had struck me as a mysterious enigma ever since he decided to join our mission. He never spoke of his origins so much was unknown about him. One thing I did know was that Alex possessed powers that were unimaginable…

The Mercury Adept's Psynergy was incredible. The reason Saturos and Menardi had allowed him to join us was because of his unique powers such as teleportation and levitation. I had never seen such skills before! And his strength overly surpassed my own… perhaps even both Saturos and Menardi's…

However, he never portrayed his full power whenever engaged in combat with monsters. Unlike the Proxians who totally obliterated their enemies (either big or small) with explosive flames, Alex had always conserved his Psynergy to a minimal.

Although Alex had been traveling with us for some time now, I couldn't help but be suspicious of his antics. _Why_ would he offer to help us? What would it gain him?

There had to be reason. I could sense that he wasn't someone who would simply help another person in need.

He noticed my staring and gave me a little smirk. "Something the matter?" he asked.

I quickly looked away. "No, nothing," I answered and ran off to catch up to Menardi for she had gone far ahead of us.

We ran down the same path as the previous group as swiftly and carefully as possible. Crossing the familiar bridge that led to the old stone steps of the Healer's Sanctum, we momentarily paused to scout for any villagers nearby.

Miraculously, there was none and at the top of the stairs, the monks and elders were far in the corner; far enough to not notice our presence. I almost hesitated to follow Menardi when I recognized who the villagers were.

Nostalgia was overcoming me again… I breathed deeply as I ran up the stairs that I had never stepped foot on until now. Memories of my past childhood kept flashing in my head. I could remember the time when I once tried to enter Mt. Aleph with Jenna…

Yeah, that was fun… I was rather disappointed that Isaac's plan never worked that day. But now, three years later, I was walking through the open entrance of Sol Sanctum.

The old feeling of excitement ran through me as I followed Saturos's lead. Bewildered by the complexity of the ancient sanctum, I was simply awed at the entire layout. Pools of water, mazy corridors, a few weak monsters… The thought of how much fun I could have had in the sanctum as a child plagued me.

For a brief moment, all the stress that filled me up completely vanished as I skipped on stone tiles surrounded by water and ran through long corridors filled with smoking carcasses of monsters that I could assume was the doing of the previous group.

After a short while, Saturos slowed to a stop before a corner and quickly gestured the rest of us to be quiet. Panting, I held my breath to listen, hearing voices around the bend.

"Look at the floor! The symbol of Sol changed to Luna!" The voice sounded aged, obviously it was Kraden speaking.

"But why?" someone asked; a young man.

I carefully peeked over Saturos's shoulder to gain a better look of the group. Inwardly, I smiled.

My dear sister had grown a few inches taller as did her hair. Seeing her made me happy. I truly missed her as did Mother and Father.

Beside her stood two familiar friends; Isaac and Garet. Both of them had gotten quite taller and seemed much more mature. (Actually, just Isaac; Garet did not seem to understand what the one named Kraden was talking about.)

_Isaac_… I gave my old friend a quiet smile. _Your father is alive_.

We listened and watched in silence as the secret of Sol Sanctum unfolded in the room before us.

"Surely… there must be something in this room," Kraden conjured. The figure of the old man paced the glowing room. It appeared as if moonlight was shining above it. In the centre of the floor was a beam of light coming from the symbol of Luna. The beam pointed directly to the wall.

The four of them examined the wall and to my surprise, the beam of light distorted the stone to create what I could assume was a portal.

Saturos grinned, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction. "I was right," he said, "They have solved the secrets of Sol Sanctum."

"Hey! That's pretty cool!" Garet blurted out loud.

"This… This must be it!" Kraden exclaimed through his excitement. "Isaac, let's go!"

The blond boy looked hesitant. "What? Go in _there_?" he asked skeptically.

The old man was ushering him towards the new portal. "Yes! Yes! Jump in!"

"Are you sure –" Isaac was shoved in before he could finish. Disappearing in a flash of white, the boy was gone.

"Isaac!" both Jenna and Garet cried at once.

Before either of them could say another word, Kraden himself leapt into the portal and vanished.

I saw Jenna shaking her head in disbelief. "Oh jeez…" she groaned, throwing her arms in the air. "Should we follow them?"

The red-haired boy shrugged. "Seems like a good idea…" he answered, walking closer to the mysterious entrance. "We should check to see if they're okay."

"I don't know, Garet…"

"Come on. What're you afraid of?" the boy asked in a teasing manner.

My sister crossed her arms and stomped her foot. "I'm not afraid of anything!" she retorted then jumped in the portal in haste to prove her words.

Laughing to himself, the boy soon followed.

With the room empty, we came out of hiding to examine the portal ourselves.

Menardi snorted at the sight of it. "How did those brats figure this out when we could not?" she spat, obviously furious.

The other Proxian shot her a look. "Don't get overworked over it," he told her sternly. "We finally came this far so let's take this opportunity."

"W-Wait," I stammered nervously, stopping the man from stepping into the distorted wall. "Shouldn't we wait for a little while?"

I felt three pairs of eyes stare at me as I avoided everyone's gaze and instead looked at the shimmering glow coming from Luna.

"Why should we wait?" Saturos questioned, a hint of impatience in his tone. It had always been difficult to go against either Proxian's word of order. They were stubborn and aggressive in every way that I was afraid to even talk to them face-to-face.

This time, however, I wanted to speak of personal matters. Slowly, I raised my head to look at Saturos's intense stare. "Jenn – Those people," I quickly corrected. "I don't want you to harm any of them."

There was an awkward silence. The Mars Adept slightly narrowed his eyes. "So be it," he responded casually. "There will be no harm _if_ they follow our orders."

"That's –"

"That's what I'll only agree to, boy," he growled before disappearing in the portal.

Menardi followed without saying a word while Alex and I remained in the tranquil chamber. I wanted to enter but I couldn't… I was afraid of confronting my sister and old friends.

If they saw me, how would they react? Did they believe I was dead for the past few years?

Hesitating, I let out a discomforted sigh.

Alex gestured towards the portal. "Are you scared of what you'll see?" he asked, raising an eyebrow when he saw I did not make a move. "Or, are you afraid of whom you'll _meet_?"

I frowned at the Mercury Adept's uncanny ability to notice what was bothering me. "The latter," I quietly answered.

Smirking that familiar smirk, he pointed at my shawl. "Why not cover your face if you don't want to be noticed by your old companions?"

I grasped my cloak, wondering if using it could work… "How did you know?" I inquired his knack of uncovering my fear.

"Hmm?" Alex raised his brow.

Sighing mentally, I quickly shook my head. "Never mind." I didn't want to pry into the details or waste anymore time.

Wrapping the loose cloth around my head, I made sure to cover my entire forehead and partly my eyes so Jenna wouldn't be able to recognize me right away. I heard Alex let out a short chuckle.

"My, you look ridiculous," he said frankly and I snorted at him. "But it might do. Go in and see what's happening."

I immediately suspected something of the other Adept. "You're coming too, aren't you?"

He nodded. "Of course. Why? Do you want me to go first?"

"Err –"

"Then all right then." Alex turned around and vanished into the portal without my answer.

I was a little surprised but soon regained my posture. I took one last glance around the now empty room, trying to calm my shaking nerves. On the other side, Jenna, Isaac and Garet were waiting…

I _had_ to confront them… Not to show them I was alive and well, but to gain the Elemental Stars to complete my mission. Taking a slow, deep breath, I jumped into the portal.

Instantly, I felt myself float in the air. It was rather relaxing and calming before I suddenly just stopped. I was back on solid ground. There was a gentle breeze and the air smelled like an open sea.

_Where am I?_

I was bewildered by the sight; the sky was as black as night but I could clearly see like it was light as day. A vast body of water surrounded the entire area like an ocean.

There, in front of me, was my sister with her back turned towards me.

"What will you do with us once you've collected the stars?" she asked, visibly terrified at the two Proxian warriors before her.

The old man standing beside her, shook his head. "They'll probably get rid of us…" he murmured.

"No, they will _not_," I spoke up, making sure that Saturos would keep his promise. That made everyone turn to look at me. "They promised to leave you alone, right?" I gave the Proxian a stern glare, which most likely went unnoticed since half my face was covered.

Saturos exhaled in frustration. "Well, they have to cooperate in order for me to keep that promise," he snapped.

"They'll be safe if they hand over the Elemental Stars," Menardi added, shooting a scowl at me.

I just nodded to agree with her statement.

"Good," she commented. Saturos then returned his direction back over the water. Out in the distance were tall stone pillars and small miniature islands of rock. Standing on one of those stone islands was Isaac and Garet.

"You heard us," Saturos yelled over at them. "If you wish to save your friends, give us the Elemental Stars!"

"You do accept our terms, yes?" asked Menardi, fingering her scythe weapon in her hands.

I glowered at the wicked blade she carried around with her. She had always threatened me with that whenever I did something not to her liking… such as losing to her when sparring. (_Ugh... _Having a scythe swing mere millimeters away from your face all the time was not fun.)

Isaac did not look too happy with the choice he had been given. Neither would I if I were in his place… The boy simply nodded his head in agreement, but the old man protested.

"Isaac! You can't let them have the Elemental Stars!" Kraden called out. Infuriated, Saturos pulled out his sword and brought it close to Kraden's face. The elder man quickly backed away, eyeing the blade with fear.

"Do you dare deny us, boys?" Saturos questioned. "You want your friends to be safe, don't you?" He then swung his sword directly at Jenna but stopped it abruptly in front of her frightened face.

I cringed. Anger began to well inside of me…

Saturos laughed at Jenna's terrified jerk. My sister drew a sharp breath and glared bravely at the Proxian. The man stepped closer to Jenna and slowly brought the edge of the sword to her neck.

"Stop that, Saturos! We aren't here to hurt anyone!" I growled, taking a step forward. His treatment with Jenna was uncalled for! The bastard did not have to threaten my sister in such a way.

"Felix," Saturos sighed, amused at my outcry. "I'm just making sure that they'll give us the Stars. If they don't want them hurt then they'll have to give us them." He sneered and backed away.

"F-Felix?" Jenna gasped, abruptly turning around to look at me.

"Felix!" I heard Isaac and Garet cry out as well.

I frowned but nodded. "Yeah… it's me." I slowly untied my cloak and revealed my face to them all. Jenna gawked at me with confusion and sadness on her face… I quickly looked away. I couldn't bear to meet her auburn eyes.

"Felix…" she whispered, her voice barely audible. "It can't be… Y-You…"

"Jenna… I'm sorry," was all I could say. I wanted to say more; like how much I had missed her, how much I had wanted to come home, how much I had…

I wanted to tell her _everything_.

"But how?" she questioned, a sob evident in her tone.

I lifted my head, seeing tears streak down her gentle face. "It… was a miracle that I survived that day," I told her softly.

"We are the ones who saved him," Saturos added, smirking at my helplessness.

"We saw him in the river, unconscious, as we passed," Menardi explained, cocking her head at me.

I nodded. "I've been with them ever since. I've experienced a lot." During the time I've spent in Prox, I had learned many, _many_ things: Swordsmanship, Psynergy, Alchemy… and _death_. Over the years, I was trained to fight by the warriors that protected Prox and the use of Psynergy from my father. As well, the elders taught me great knowledge of the four elements and the devastating effects of Alchemy or lack thereof.

I had grown over those three years and now I was on an important mission.

_Only I can do it, Jenna…_

"Why, br-brother?" my sister cried, "I was left all alone…"

I deeply frowned at her. "Jenna…" I breathed, holding the urge to run up and comfort her. "I'm sorry…"

"I thought you were dead…" She looked at the floor to avoid my gaze.

I flinched at the statement, but continued to watch my sister cry.

"Enough of this," Saturos snarled between us. "Save your teary reunion for later."

I didn't respond. I kept my eyes on Jenna.

"The Stars come first. Surely this would be acceptable, would it not, Kraden?" Menardi questioned. "Felix would never let any harm come to you or his sister. Now hurry and give us those Stars!"

I heard Isaac and Garet whispering to each other from far away. I didn't care what they were discussing; I only paid attention to my sister. She had stopped crying but dared not to meet my eyes.

"All right, we'll hand over the Stars," Garet called out in defeat. I noticed the redhead jump from the stone island to a stone pillar, carrying a few bags. Suddenly, the air before him shimmered with Psynergy and a familiar Mercury Adept appeared. (Alex's sudden appearance made me ponder where he was after I arrived.)

Having someone to appear out of thin air right in front of him, Garet let out a loud cry of surprise.

Laughing slightly, Alex calmly reached out his hand and offered to take the stars from the boy.

"You're late, Alex," said Saturos, impatiently. It was strange how Alex had a knack for arriving whenever he was needed most. "He's one of our companions, give him the Stars," Saturos continued.

Garet hesitated but gave the bags to Alex after a brief moment. The Mercury Adept then simply levitated off the ground, (receiving looks and gasps of awe and surprise from those who had never seen his power), once he had obtained the bags. (I could only assume that Mercury Adepts were the only ones capable of such powers.)

"Hmm? You have yet to retrieve the last star," Alex announced, counting the bags. "You should hurry and get the last one." He then headed to our direction but Garet's angry outburst stopped him.

"Wait! You want _us_ to get the last Star? Why the hell can't you damn guys do it!" Garet exclaimed, furiously. "You also promised to let Jenna and Kraden go once we gave you those Stars. Now let them go!"

Saturos laughed at him. "We promised to let them go when we have _all _the Stars!" he pointed out.

"Hurry up! We don't have all day!" Menardi chimed in, tapping her foot impatiently.

Growling, Garet slowly nodded in agreement and headed back towards Isaac.

Jenna remained silent while Kraden looked over at her with pity and sorrow. He placed his hand on her shoulder, possibly to assure her. But she did not respond. All eyes were on the two boys as they leapt between stone pillars to reach the far lone isle of the red glowing star.

The last key to saving Weyard was taken from its safety and into Isaac's hands. Carefully, the boy placed it into a bag and abruptly turned around to head back. Before taking the first step, the ground began to tremble, catching all of us off guard.

Loud cracking sounds could be heard as steam began to erupt from the water's floor. In a blink of an eye, the entire body of water vanished and in its place was dried up ground; cracked and glowing from gushing lava!

The entire chamber was breaking apart! Rocks began to fall from the unseen ceiling and most of the stone pillars that occupied the surrounding area had collapsed to rubble. The temperature had quickly risen from the immense heat of the oozing lava.

I began to panic. In fact, everyone was panicking.

"Wh-What's happening?" Menardi shrieked, keeping her balance from the shaking ground.

Saturos had an expression I had never seen on him before; the sign of _fear_. "Not again!" he cried.

I could remember Menardi telling me how they had failed to enter the true Sol Sanctum and had instead triggered at trap which turned out to be the terrible storm three years ago.

Was all this another trap?

I ignored the thought of it when the rumbling and shaking got worse. I immediately snapped my attention to getting everyone out of here.

Alex appeared frightened, which was rare to see. "Without the energy of the Elemental Stars, the chamber is collapsing!" he cried.

"This must be the power of Alchemy!" Kraden exclaimed.

The shaking abruptly stopped as it had started. I slowly breathed a sigh of relief as I regained my composure.

"It's… It's over… But what was that?" Menardi questioned.

"What is _that_!" Jenna suddenly cried out, causing everyone to either jump or flinch. She pointed towards something that was floating in the air that I did not notice during the chaos. It looked like a giant floating rock with an eye. A monster, perhaps?

Everyone was silent, except for Isaac and Garet who were talking far away. Finally, Kraden spoke up, "It must be… _The Wise One_!"

We all seemed puzzled by Kraden's exclamation with the exception of Alex who appeared anxious at the sight of the creature.

"Such power! Incredible!" he cried, sensing the enormous amount of energy emanating from The Wise One.

It was… amazing. The creature's power most likely surpassed all of our strengths put together by tenfold.

The Wise One was gathering energy inside the chamber and into itself, increasing its power even more.

"Wow…" Jenna whispered in both awe and fright. All her previous sadness had dissipated.

"It must be the guardian of the Elemental Stars!" Saturos proclaimed, stepping away from the creature.

"I think we should get out of here," I suggested, seeing how dangerous it was if we were to anger the Wise One. (And stealing the Elemental Stars would probably cause the being to be angry with each and _every_ one of us…) I was trembling uncontrollably from fear of what might happen if we lingered any longer.

"But we can't," Menardi protested, "We need the Mars Star!"

Alex shook his head, agreeing with me. "We don't have time," he said, shaking his head. "We must get out of here as fast as we can."

Menardi looked desperately at Saturos who also shook his head. "We'll have to get it another day, Menardi. Let's get out of here before things get more complicated."

"What about Isaac and Garet? You can't leave them behind!" Jenna wailed, frantically pointing at the two stranded youths.

The two were trapped on the tiny isle of the where the Mars Star resided. The pillars that had once led to the lone rock had been destroyed from the earthquake and lava. There was no way they could safely cross over to the portal…

I didn't want to leave them – I didn't want to _abandon_ them. They would… die.

"Forget about them!" Saturos snarled, turning to the portal. "They'll never make it out in time."

"No!" Jenna and Kraden cried out. Tears welled in my sister's eyes as she looked onwards at her dear friends – _our_ dear friends.

"Saturos, they may survive this…" Menardi warned the other warrior.

"It's possible…" Saturos snorted, eyeing the Wise One cautiously. He then turned to my sister. "Let's take these two as hostages so if they survive, they'll have to trade us the Mars Star for these two."

"But what about our promise?" I asked angrily. Jenna was not supposed to be involved with our mission!

"We never thought that this would happen. We can't really keep our promise now," Saturos snapped. "We won't hurt them, Felix. We'll just have to take them with us for… negotiating purposes."

I furrowed my brow in anger. We were supposed to go in and get out with the Elemental Stars; not take any hostages. _Especially_ not taking Jenna as one…

"Please, leave Jenna out of this. Just take me instead!" begged the old man.

Saturos shook his head. "It doesn't matter. Even you cannot save the girl. Only _them_." He pointed to the Isaac and Garet. The boys were watching us helplessly by the statue of the Goddess of Mars.

"If they trade us the Mars Star for her then she'll be safe but until then, she stays with us," Saturos continued.

Menardi looked at me and said, "If we leave her here, she'll certainly die. You don't want that to happen, right?"

I silently cursed under my breath. The woman was right; if we did not take Kraden and Jenna along, they might not survive. And the last Star… If Isaac and Garet could somehow escape then we could exchange the Mars Star for Kraden and Jenna.

_Argh!_ I didn't want Jenna to be used like this.

The ground began to rumble again. Lava violently spewed out of the cracks, causing the chamber to start filling with molten rock

"We need to get out of here. We should discuss this later, Felix," Alex informed.

Jenna glanced over at me desperately. "Felix…" she whispered.

Grief crossed over her features as she cried quietly at the thought of losing her two close friends.

"Please, can we go now?" Alex urgently asked.

I quickly nodded my head while keeping my gaze locked on Jenna's.

_I'm sorry, Jenna._ _I'm _sorry... I wanted to say. But the words would not form in my mouth.

I grabbed her hand and pulled her with me. "Let's go!" I screamed, biting back the feeling of guilt for taking my only sister along against her will and… abandoning my old friends to their possible death.

Saturos was first to leave, followed by Kraden then Menardi.

"Isaac! Garet!" Jenna cried as I dragged her to the exit. "Don't die!" I took one last look at the two, feeling utterly horrible to leave them.

_My friends,_ I silently prayed. _Please live!_

I leapt into the mystical portal and felt the unbearable heat from the lava fade away.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

They were leaving… one by one. Felix, my old friend whom I had thought _dead_, gave us one last look before entering the strange portal with Jenna right behind. The blue-haired man named Alex also gave us a final glance before leaving Garet and I in the collapsing chamber.

Garet muttered a curse beside me as he looked over at the only exit. The hot, steaming lava down below obviously prevented us from reaching it. "What do you think we should do?" he asked desperately, creasing his brow with worry.

"I don't know," I said, feeling scared and angry at the same time. We were supposed to have a fun time in Sol Sanctum. And how did our excursion ended up? Kraden and Jenna got kidnapped while Garet and I were trapped in an erupting chamber filling with lava. I let out a snarl of frustration and kicked a stone into the supposedly rising lava. I then soon noticed that the lava wasn't seeping through the cracks at all but remained unmoving and glowing.

"Garet," I said, wanting to show him what I discovered. I turned around to look at him but froze half-way. Floating behind us was that one-eyed rock from before; the _Wise One_ I heard Kraden cry.

Immeasurable power radiated from the creature and I immediately felt afraid by its presence. But it was not the Wise One's power that froze me place, it was its _eye_. The single blue, piercing orb of the ancient guardian paralyzed my entire body. It was like the eye could _see_ into me; into my mind… into my _soul_.

"Yeah, Isaac?" I heard Garet say. I couldn't respond. I was unable to move any part of my body.

"Isaac?" Garet questioned again, "What are you staring… at?"

It sounded like Garet saw the guardian as well fell silent. That was until the creature spoke:

"_Child, why are you standing there_?" it had addressed me... It did not speak through human speech but instead communicated in my mind. (It was logical since the guardian obviously had no mouth.)

We jumped at the sound of its words in our head. I was too surprised and also afraid to answer the mighty being.

"_It has become dangerous here_," it continued, giving me the slight impression that the guardian was _not_ floating before us in intent to punish us for taking the Elemental Stars. The ground began to tremble again and the lava below began to flow once more.

Infuriated, Garet yelled at the guardian to stop the earthquakes. Somehow, the Wise One looked confused at my friend but quickly ignored the boy as it floated towards the gushing cracks. Visible Psynergy surrounded it as it forced the molten rock back down.

It was truly incredible… the guardian's power! Having shown us its ability I immediately knew that the guardian was not the cause of the eruption.

"_The volcano_," it began, turning to face us, "_It will erupt soon. I cannot hold it for long. You two must get out of here quickly…_"

The Mars Adept shook his head in frustration. "What? Aren't _you_ the one doing this?" he growled.

"Garet," I snapped, giving him a frown. "The Wise One didn't cause this to happen. _We_ did."

"Us?" He was taken back.

"When we took the Stars."

The redhead no longer seemed angry but guilty. "Oh…" He then faced the guardian and scratched the back of his head apologetically. "You know, we could've been long gone from here if there was a way we could get _out_ of here," he told the Wise One, not meeting the guardian's stare.

Blinking, the guardian acknowledged our situation and said, "_I see." _ It levitated back towards us, stopping before the island we stood on. "_The chamber –" _It was interrupted by the sudden glow of the statue of the Mars goddess.

Yellow streaks of light erupted from the marble figure and disappeared into the dark night sky. I gawked at where the light had gone; completely clueless at what had just happened.

"_The Elemental Djinn_," the Wise One began, as it watched the same light that shrouded the goddess of Mars, erupt from the other goddesses as well. "_They have returned_."

"A… what?" I quietly questioned out loud. I glanced over at Garet and he shrugged. He didn't know what the Wise One was talking about either.

The guardian then lowered its single eye directly at me and I flinched. "_Show me the Mars Star_," it commanded.

I did what I was told without hesitating and I brought out the Mars Star that I had placed in one of the mythril bags Kraden had given me. The stone's power flowed from within and I could easily feel it in my grasp. I raised my hand to show the guardian the brilliant red orb, hoping that it would take it back and forgive us for what we had done.

The Wise One started to glow with Psynergy and focused its attention to the Star.

_Please, take it…_ I silently prayed. But my hope was crushed when the light from the Elemental Star diminished and its red colour dulled. No longer did the Star's power radiate from the glossy orb.

"_Put it away, child_," it told me and regrettably I did.

I wanted to ask the guardian why it did not want it back but it continued to speak, "_The Elemental Stars… they are moving away from here…Without the power of the Elemental Stars, the magma flows freely once again and the chamber is collapsing."_

I didn't like the sound of that. If Mt. Aleph were to erupt, Vale could be… destroyed!

"_The Stars, with no chamber to return to, the world will be exposed to the threat of Alchemy."_

Garet and I looked at the guardian in confusion. "Did you say that Alchemy is a threat?" he asked.

"_It can be a dangerous power if misused_," the Wise One explained, staring at us both. "_If the Elemental Stars light the four lighthouses, that power will be released. As long as the four lighthouses remain unlit–"_

A massive quake interrupted us. The chamber began to glow a dangerously bright red, which could only mean…

"It's erupting!" Garet cried, panicking at the sight of quickly rising lava.

The guardian once again hovered over to the opening and used its Psynergy to cease the flow of lava. However, it did not work like last time…

The chamber shook violently with another massive quake, knocking me over to my hands and knees. Garet helped me up. I tried to steady myself but the ground was too unstable so I fell again, pulling with me.

I let out a curse as I climbed to my feet; staying low to keep myself balanced. In my mind I was frantically trying to think of a way to escape from the death hole we stood in. I searched for anything that we could use but found absolutely nothing! In the corner of my eye, I noticed the Wise One use its Psynergy again it failed.

"_The volcano is erupting! Get out of here!_" it cried when it was unable to prevent the lava flow.

I looked around desperately. "H-How? There's no way to reach the exit!" I screamed in panic.

_Damn it! We're going to die!_

The Wise One closed its eye. "_I will help you_." Psynergy surrounded the guardian as it performed another spell.

A blinding light flashed before my eyes. All of a sudden the unbearable heat from the lava was gone and I had to blink a few times before realizing that I was back in the room we came from. I turned around and saw the portal gone.

Garet seemed dazed. "Did that floating eye thing save us?" he asked me, sounding quite unsure of what had happened.

I nodded. "Yeah… I think he did," I answered, breathing deeply at how close to death we were. The ground began to shake violently under our feet, snapping me back to realization that we were not completely out of danger yet. "Come on, let's get out of here!"

I ran as fast as I could, avoiding falling debris and rocks while trying my best to remember the passageways we came through. I ran desperately to find my way out of the maze. I knew I made a few wrong turns when we ran into dead ends.

_Ugh! I hate this place! _I growled mentally as I gritted my teeth at the sight of another dead end.

Garet took the lead this time and he led us in a circle until we finally found the damn exit out of the secret chamber. We ran, jumped over pools of water and ran again without stopping. When we reached the final room, which I could easily remember was the first of Sol Sanctum, I nearly fell into the water as I hopped along the stone tiles with weary legs.

Exhausted, the two of us made it through the sanctum's exit while panting and sweating heavily. Grasping for breath, we continued forward and down the stone steps, leading back to Vale…

I tensed at what would become of us if the villagers knew what we had done. Sneaking into the sanctum ourselves was one thing, but allowing the Elemental Stars be taken away and triggering an erupting volcano that could possibly annihilate all of Vale was another.

I wouldn't be surprised if the entire village exiled us. That was, if Vale _would _survive the eruption…

I could hear shrieks and cries of horror coming from the villagers as the mountain continued to tremble. Among the screams, I heard someone mention our names;

"…and Garet would never go up Mt. Aleph. How foolish would they be?"

"Oh, man…" Garet groaned breathlessly. "It's Gramps and the others." He dropped on the ground when his legs gave way.

"Come on, Garet," I said, motioning him to get back up. "We should warn everyone." Even though I did not want to show my face to the others, I had to tell them all about the danger they could be in. We were responsible for the eruption… after all.

The redhead frowned with guilt before letting out a sigh. Slowly, he got up and we headed towards the villagers.

Garet's younger brother was first to spot us approach and yelled out his brother's name in response. "Garet!"

All heads turned to our direction and I immediately felt a deep pang of guilt sink into my stomach as I gave them all a grim look.

"Isaac!" my Mother exclaimed, running up to me. By her expression, I could tell she had been frantically worrying over me as well as furious. "Where have you been? Did you climb Mt. Aleph without the elders? Did you, Isaac? Did you? Look at me!"

Flinching, I could only give my mother a small glance before adverting my eyes the ground beside me. "Mom, I'm sorry…" I murmured.

"What happened?"

"Where are Jenna and Kraden?" the Mayor added, seeing two of our group missing.

I shook my head and continued to avoid the villagers' stares. "They've been taken away," I answered in a monotone.

"What? By who?" someone had asked.

"What's going on?" another villager questioned.

"What did you do?" one demanded.

Cringing, I ignored the voices and remained silent. Garet was asked where we had been by his grandfather. "We were in Mt. Aleph with Jenna and Master Kraden," he explained. "We… Well, we met with some bad guys up there. As well as Felix."

"Felix?" I heard a few people murmur in confusion.

The Great Healer appeared in the corner of my eye. "My, this is rather complicating…" he spoke in a calm manner despite the calamity going on nearby. "You boys, please come explain everything inside the Sanctum." He turned towards his stone temple and I, giving Garet and Mother a slight nod, followed right behind the old man.

Inside the Healer's Sanctum, I felt hot and stuffy due to my anxiousness and the ugly guilt lingering inside me. Only Mother, the Mayor and the two monks were inside with us.

Giving Garet and I a firm yet kind glance, the Healer gently stroked his long beard and told us to explain everything that had happened.

We did. It took a long time, but we managed to describe every detail of our little adventure such as how we got into Mt. Aleph, uncovered the _true_ Sol Sanctum, as well as the encounter with Felix and the three strangers that took Jenna and Kraden away.

"Their names," Garet began, rubbing his chin in thought as he tried to remember. "They were Saterus and Melody, I think. The other was Alex, for sure."

I corrected the Mars Adept, "It was _Saturos _and _Menardi_."

He rolled his eyes at me, "Whatever," he breathed, crossing his arms and looking agitated. "It doesn't matter. Jenna and Master Kraden have been taken by them. We need to do something!"

"Calm down, Garet," his grandfather urged, his old face creased in deep concern.

Mother exhaled a worried sigh. "What will happen to Jenna and Kraden?" she pondered.

I only shook my head and shrugged.

What _would_ they do? If any harm came to either of them, they would all pay dearly by my own hands if I were to ever find them. But I knew Felix would not let his sister come to any danger. I_ knew_ when he took her with him in the collapsing chamber.

_Felix, are you still _you?

It had been three years and perhaps living with that fearsome pair for that long may have changed him dramatically. However, he did not seem all that way during that brief encounter. I had a feeling that the old Felix I knew was still there…

It may be my selfish wanting for my lost friend back that could be making me delusional to believe such a thing were true.

I wanted to find out if Felix was still… my friend.

"Felix… I know he wouldn't allow anything to happen to them," I answered, hoping for it to be true. Garet, on the other hand, seemed doubtful.

"Let's send a group of warriors to save them!" the redhead suggested, his arms flailing anxiously. "Jenna – both of them could still be nearby and–"

"Garet, please!" the Mayor cut in, sending an angry glare at the boy. Garet furrowed his brow and groaned in annoyance but overall fell silent. His grandfather continued, "There aren't many warriors in Vale. Even if we did, we don't even know where those people have gone! Healer, am I correct?"

The Healer did not respond. We all turned our attention to the old sage, who appeared to be staring mindlessly into the air before him.

"Healer?" the mayor questioned, a twinge of worry in his tone.

Abruptly, the Healer turned his head to face Garet's grandfather, causing the other old man to jump. "I apologize. I was thinking about that stone that appeared in front of Isaac. I have seen it before…"

I blinked in surprise while Garet let out a "What?" in return.

The Healer, stroking his beard once more, closed his eyes and said, "I have seen it in my dreams and… now before my mind's eye. It appeared again and spoke to me."

"You saw it just now?" Garet asked.

Nodding, the elder man continued, "I believe it is the _Wise One_, guardian of the Elemental Stars."

"That was what Master Kraden had called the thing when we saw it," Garet commented.

"It told me what happened to you in Sol Sanctum."

The Mayor looked hopefully at the Healer and asked, "Did the Wise One say anything about the eruption?"

"Will the volcano destroy Vale?" my mother added, furrowing her brow in worry.

The Healer shook his head. "It is impossible to stop it now…"

"What will happen to Vale?" I asked grimly. Guilt was eating at my insides as I stared morbidly at the Great Healer.

"Do not worry, Isaac. Vale will be safe. The Wise One will keep the lava from reaching us," the elder man replied, greatly relieving the stress locked up inside me.

I let out a long grateful sight and waited for the Healer to continue but he did not. Instead, he appeared to daze out again, which I assumed that the Wise One must be speaking to him.

The old man's expression then distorted to fear.

"What's wrong, Healer?" the Mayor asked, growing concerned.

"A dreadfully immense and terrible power looms ahead…" the other replied. Weary grey eyes landed upon me as the Healer continued, "The Elemental Stars; they hold enormous power within them. When the four lighthouses are lit, their powers will be released upon the world!"

I felt unnerved by the Healer's words as well as his sudden stare. I had an urge to show him the Mars Star I carried but fought against it for it would do no good. The Elemental Stars… I knew they possessed a great power. I had felt it when I touched each of them. Specifically the Venus Star. Its power seemed stronger than the others when I held it in my hand.

And now, the power of the Elemental Stars were lost; all but one. I felt a horrible regret as I pondered what I could have done to prevent what had happened so far.

Sneaking into the sanctum? How stupid was I?

Cursing at myself mentally, I focused my attention back to the Healer.

"Once the power of the Stars are released, the whole world will be…" the Healer trailed off; not wanting to mention the dreadful truth of the fate of the world.

We all fell silent. Until Mother spoke up, "The Wise One wants us to get those Stars back, doesn't he?" she asked.

The elder man shook his head, which made me confused. "The world is ours, to save or to destroy. If we don't do something then the fate of the world will come to an end."

The Mayor shook his head in shame. "What a pity…"

"We cannot hope for salvation. We must save ourselves…"

I glanced over at Garet, seeing that he was giving me the same look of guilt I gave him. I was killing myself mentally for I knew it was my entire fault. If I did not agree to the stupid plan of breaking into Sol Sanctum ourselves, nothing would have happened.

But alas, I followed my desire and ended up endangering the whole world.

_Ugh! Stupid!_ I growled inwardly as I furled my hands into fists.

"What do you suppose we should do?" I heard my mother ask, breaking my self-loathing.

"We should go after them…" I announced, knowing that it was my responsibility to repair the damage I had done. My voice came out angrier than I expected.

"Isaac…" Mother whispered, surprised by my reaction.

The Healer nodded at my decision. "It was their fate alone to gather the Elemental Stars," he said.

"You mean, you're laying them responsible for the fate of the world?" Mother asked, surprised and saddened.

I was somewhat bewildered by the old man's agreement.

"Um, who are you talking about?" Garet questioned, seemingly confused. I sighed and gave him a sullen stare. His grandfather glared angrily at him.

"He's talking about us, Garet. Me and you," I answered him nonchantly.

"Garet! Don't you see how serious this situation is?" his grandfather asked, obviously furious.

"I know how serious it is, Gramps!" the redhead argued back. "It's just that I was thinking about something… If you're not sending any warriors to save Jenna, then I'm willing to go." He stood up tall, his face lacking the worried guilt that once plagued him. His features now bore a strong determination to fulfill the quest we had been fated to do.

I grinned, seeing how ridiculous my friend appeared in that stance. Ridiculous _and_ heroic.

Straightening my posture, I gave everyone a nod. "I, as well, will accept this fate," I said with my mind set on facing the challenges that lay before us. "We are responsible for what has happened. We will make up for it by saving Master Kraden and Jenna, and getting the Elemental Stars back."

Accepting our fate to save the world was truly better than being exiled from the village as punishment.

I felt confident at our decision to embark on the journey for not only the Elemental Stars, but for Jenna, Kraden, and... Felix. All eyes in the room fell upon us. A small smile formed over the Healer's covered lips. "Isaac. Garet. You two have surely grown up to be adults."

"Garet, I'm proud of you. You really are going to take this responsibility," the boy's grandfather commented, giving a proud smile.

Mother didn't say anything… Instead, she looked at me with sadness in her eyes. But it soon faded and in place was a bright smile. "Isaac, you've certainly grown up to be a man," she began, forcing a smile from me. "I'm proud of you. This is your decision so I will follow it."

"Isaac. Garet," the Healer began, his smile replaced with a firm stare. "Your fates have been chosen. Now heed the words of the Wise One…"

-0-

It was an abrupt but understandable decision between the Mayor and Mother when Garet and I were to begin our quest first thing in the _morning_. I did not want to leave so soon, but I knew we had to in order find Jenna and Kraden easier. If we lingered any longer, they would be too far ahead of us to catch up.

I sighed as I fumbled around with my belongings, unable to decide what to bring. Clothes? Mother had helped pack the necessary clothing needed for various weather conditions. Since it was nearing the end of autumn, warm clothes were 'required' as Mother had said.

Other necessities were water, of course, some healing herbs and remedy elixirs, and most importantly, a sack of gold. (Namely, my allowance and some extra coins from Mother.)

"Isaac," I heard my mother call from downstairs. "Come here, I want to give you something."

"Hm?" Curious, I dropped what I was holding and hopped down the staircase. Mother was waiting below, holding a long package wrapped in brown paper. "What's that, Mom?"

She handed the parcel to me when I came up to her and almost dropped it from the object's unexpected weight. "Isaac! Be careful! I just bought it," she warned, grabbing the package to steady it in my grasp.

I almost gawked at Mother when I realized what was inside the paper. "This… is for me?" I gasped, astounded by the gift.

Nodding, my mother released her hold and smiled. "It's going to be a dangerous journey so you'll be needing this. Go on, open it."

I ripped the paper in haste and was greeted by my own grinning reflection on the shiny surface of a brand new sword. It was a _beautiful_ blade. Its hilt was painted gold and on the guard was a glistening red jewel encrusted in the centre on both sides. The edge was relatively long, longer than my arm's length, and possibly crafted from steel. From the looks of it, I could assume that it came at a hefty price.

"How much did you pay for it?" I asked, frowning at how expensive the weapon could be.

Mother simply waved her hand. "Oh, don't worry about how much it was, dear," she answered, shaking her head. "Do you like it?"

"Like it? I love it!" I exclaimed as I eyed the remarkable blade in my hands. "But seriously, how much did you pay for it?"

"Isaac." She gave me sullen look. "It wasn't too expensive. Marl gave me a discount knowing that you'll be needing a weapon for your quest."

"Mom… Thanks." Holding the hilt with one hand, I pulled Mother into a hug with the other. She held me tightly and we remained that way for a short while.

When she pulled back I saw tears forming in her eyes. "Isaac," she sniffed, resting her hands on my shoulders. "I-I want you to be careful, o-okay? Don't get hurt. Don't… Don't give up. I want you to return here safely, understand?"

I grabbed her hand with my free one and gently squeezed it. "I'll be careful, Mom. Don't worry about me. I'll come home from time to time–"

"No, Isaac. Don't," she cut in, looking away.

"Huh?" I was confused.

"I… I want you to do me a favour. Will you do it?"

I blinked and furrowed my brow before nodding. "Yeah, I will."

"That's good." She then looked straight at me. "Isaac, don't ever return to Vale-" I was completely shocked at those words- "Not until you've completed your quest."

The entire phrase repeated in my mind again, causing me question my Mother's sudden words. "W-What did you say?"

"You heard me, dear… Don't waste your time coming back here when you should be focusing on saving Jenna and Kraden. I want you-" She squeezed my hand this time- "to concentrate on your journey and not worry about me."

"But you'll be all alone!" I protested. "It could take weeks, months… before-"

"Isaac, you promised me. Don't go against your word on it." Mother was no longer crying but instead her expression was stern.

"Mom…" I lowered my gaze and stared at the floor.

She lightly shook my shoulder. "Please understand, Isaac. Will you promise me?"

I hesitated. Mother was pleading me to keep such an insane promise. If I left her for who-knew-how-long, I would of course worry about her. But what she had said was right; I could not waste my time dawdling back and forth to see Mother when it was my duty – my _responsibility_ – to save the world.

Yes, I had to do it. For Mother's sake.

"I promise you, Mom," I said, returning her stare with a confident look. "I-I won't come back without Jenna and the Stars. I promise you."

She embraced in a hug, possibly the last hug we will ever have for awhile, and whispered in my ear, "I love you, Isaac. I will pray for you every night… until you come back."


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hello! Hah ha! Finally finished this chapter. Tell me if there's any typing errors, I haven't really proof read the whole thing….  
  
Chapter 7  
  
Felix's POV  
  
Slowly, I approached the door. I was nervous. I didn't quite have the courage to go up and talk to Jenna when we left Vale or during the journey to Vault…. I was a coward.  
  
But along the way, Alex kept urging me to go up and talk to her. He says that loved ones should always be united even if they are lost. I'm not really sure what he meant but he gave me some courage to go up and face her.  
  
We were, once again, resting in the inn of Vault. It brings back memories, sad ones, of how I met Saturos and Menardi, three years ago….. Tomorrow we will be heading to our first lighthouse. The Mercury Lighthouse. Saturos had mentioned that it was located near a small northern village called Imil. Alex had also mentioned that he was from there…..  
  
I quietly knocked on the door and waited. The door swung open and Kraden was standing in front of me with a grudge and hateful look. But when he saw my face, his face lightened up, a little.  
  
He gave me a kind but cautious smile. "Ah, Jenna's brother. Felix was it?" he asked.  
  
I nodded, "Uh, yeah…. That's me. I was wondering if I could talk to her…"  
  
He turned to look at her. I couldn't see clearly into the room as he blocked the doorway. "Jenna, your brother wants to talk to you." he told her.   
  
After a long pause…."Tell him to come in." I heard her say. It sounded like she was crying.  
  
Kraden stepped aside to allow me through. Jenna sat at the edge of her bed, looking at the floor. Her fists were tightly clenched and I saw tears streaming down her cheeks.  
  
"Jenna….." was all I could say. I couldn't stand watching her like this. She's in pain….  
  
"I will leave you two alone." said Kraden. He closed the door behind him, leaving me alone with Jenna.   
  
This is my chance…. Say something!  
  
But I couldn't say anything.  
  
It was silent for a moment until finally she looked up at me, with her tearful eyes. "Felix… Why?" she whispered.  
  
I didn't respond. Instead I kept looking at her beautiful face…  
  
"Why?" She tried again, "Why didn't you come back?"  
  
I took a deep and shaky breath. "Jenna," I said, barely even a whisper, "I couldn't. After they rescued me, they took me with them. I couldn't just get up and go….. They…. They saved my life. And I have to repay them by listening to them."  
  
She shook her head, "Couldn't you have at least told me you were alive?!" she cried out in sobs. She buried her head in her hands.  
  
I walked up to her. I hesitated a little but I sat right beside her and wrapped my arm around her, "Shh, don't cry." I said, "I'm really sorry, Jenna. I really am. I wish I could've told you but…. It was difficult. I was too far away to reach you. I didn't even know that our parents…. You know… I never knew until I came back to Vale. For three years I've wanted to come back and see you and mom and dad again. But now….. I'll never see mom or dad again."  
  
She remained silent. She stopped sobbing and remained looking at her hands. "But…" I continued, "I can still see you…. Alive and well. You've grown so much, Jenna. You've become a beautiful woman."  
  
I could see a small smile form on her lips. "How has Garet and Isaac been treating you? They didn't make fun of you too much, did they?" I continued. A smile was starting to form on my lips too.  
  
She wiped her tears away and shook her head, "No, they don't make fun of me, that much. They've been very nice to me ever since the accident. Except Isaac has been very annoying most of the time."  
  
We both smiled at each other. "Felix," she began as she stood up, "I'm really glad to see that you're okay…. I always felt alone. But deep down inside, I felt something…." She looked into my eyes, "I felt that somewhere, someplace that you were still alive. And I'm really glad that you are, big brother."  
  
Big brother…. I've never heard that in such a long time….  
  
She continued, "You've grown so much. You're as tall as dad used to be. And you need a haircut." she chuckled.  
  
I grinned. "You've grown up too, Jenna. But … you know what, you're still a cry-baby."  
  
Her expression quickly changed from a happy face to a murderous glare….  
  
Uh oh….  
  
"What did you call me?!" she snarled. Her eyes burned angrily at me and she raised her fists….  
  
I quickly raised my hands to protect myself and I slowly backed up as she stepped towards me with anger flushing her face.  
  
I completely forgot about her bad temper…..  
  
"Jenna., Jenna, I was joking!" I quickly told her, nervously. I hate it when she's mad…. She somehow gets stronger when she's mad….  
  
I backed into a wall…. I'm cornered!   
  
Jenna stepped face to face to me and glared. Then her lips started to twitch into a grin. Then she giggled and started to laugh. She laughed harder and harder, making it impossible for me to restrain my own laughter. I bursted out laughing along with her. We laughed and laughed. Just like old times, when me and Jenna, Isaac and Garet, would laugh for no reason for a long time….  
  
After what seemed like an eternity, our laughter subsided. I took deep, shaky breaths, trying to calm myself down. My stomach was aching but I was happy. I've never felt this way in such a long time….  
  
"Felix…." Jenna said, when she stopped giggling, "I'm so happy that you're alive! But…." She looked away saddened all of a sudden.  
  
"But what?" I asked, concerned.  
  
"What about Garet and Isaac? Do you think they're still alive?"  
  
Oh no….. I forgot that they were trapped in the volcano…. But, even if they were trapped, I know that somehow they'll make out alive. I just know it….. I know them too well. They always got out of trouble when they were kids. And hopefully, they would get out of that one……  
  
"They're still alive Jenna. I know they are…."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Isaac's POV  
  
Keeping my promise to mom and also I couldn't go back to sleep, I quickly dressed into my father's tunic, tightly wrapped the bright yellow scarf around my neck, strapped my sword to my back, gathered my supplies, and quietly headed downstairs. I saw mother still asleep….  
  
I sighed.   
  
This is it mom, I'm leaving…..  
  
"Goodbye, mom. I love you….." I whispered as I walked out the door. I was never to step foot in my house again. Until I finish my quest of course. But, how long will that be?  
  
Feels like forever…  
  
It was still early. Not many people were awake yet. And I was hungry.  
  
Should have taken some breakfast with me……  
  
I wonder if Garet's awake yet.   
  
I headed towards his house and I saw Garet, lying in front of his house. He heard me coming and looked towards me, "Couldn't sleep either?" he asked.  
  
I sat down beside him. "No," I answered, "I keep thinking of what might happen to us. And how long this quest will take."  
  
He closed his eyes and sighed. "Yeah. I've been thinking about that too. I don't really want to leave. I'll be far away from my family. That's never happened before…. We never got separated from each other."  
  
I felt envious. Garet has never lost a family member before. Unlike me. And unlike Jenna and Felix. He still has his whole family here to care for him.   
  
I guess leaving Vale is like losing a family member to him. He won't be seeing them again in a long time….. If our quest will take that long….  
  
"Don't worry, Garet. The sooner we get those Stars, the sooner we'll be home." I said cheerfully. But, deep down, I feel the same way as him. But I don't want to make him feel any worse.  
  
We sat in silence all morning until Garet's whole family woke up and saw us outside.   
  
"Garet, Isaac, what are you two outside so early? The day hasn't even started yet." said Garet's mother. She was still in her night gown but she looked ready for the day.  
  
"Sorry, mom. We just couldn't sleep because… you know. Today's the day….." Garet mumbled sadly.  
  
She gave him a small smile. "Oh Garet. Today's the day you become a real man. I'm so proud of you. Everyone is proud of you. Derik is even jealous of you."  
  
"Yeah, I want to come too!" Derik squealed. He stood beside his mother.  
  
Garet stood up, "But mom, I'll probably never see all of you again…."  
  
"Garet, what the heck are you saying?!" Kaylina shrieked out angrily from behind her mother, "You are going to come back home! And when you do, you're going to do all the chores that I will have to do for you!"  
  
"Your sister's right," his mother said happily, "This journey may be long and difficult, but you must trust in yourself, Garet. You can do this. You are always welcome to come visit us."  
  
Garet thought for a moment. Then he looked at me to see what I think about it. I just nodded my head and said, "They're right, Garet. We are going to do this. When you want to, we can always come back to visit your family."  
  
But I can't. I promised her I wouldn't……  
  
Garet seemed to lighten up when I said that. He nodded his head and said, "You're right. What was I thinking? We will come back with the Stars. With Jenna. With Kraden. And Felix too, maybe."  
  
Yeah. Maybe…. If Felix wants to come back home….  
  
"Now come on in for breakfast, Garet. Shouldn't you go home too, Isaac?" his mother questioned.  
  
I shook my head sadly, "No…. I'm not going home. Not until this quest is finished. I promised mom that I wouldn't see her until then so I left early."  
  
"But your quest hasn't even started," she responded.  
  
"It has already started, ma'am. The morning's already here. This is only the beginning……" I said.  
  
"Oh dear," she said in surprise, "Well, it hasn't begun for Garet because he still needs to eat breakfast." She smiled warmly at Garet and me.  
  
"Isaac, why don't you come and eat with us?" she asked.   
  
My stomach growled hungrily. I nodded, "Sure. I would love to, ma'am."  
  
"It sounds like Dora has been very strict with you going away." she said as she smiled. Her smile always lightened everyone's face.  
  
After eating breakfast with Garet's entire family, we got ready to leave. All the villagers gathered by the gate that lead to the outside of Vale. They were preparing us to leave….  
  
I didn't see mother anywhere…..  
  
Kallis stepped forward, "Now be careful, you two. We are counting on you." He gave us an encouraging smile.  
  
Garet and I both nodded. "We will, Kraden. We won't let you down," I said.  
  
Kaylina stepped forward and gave Garet a hug. "Now take care, little bro. Don't drink the water if it smells bad."  
  
Garet grinned, "I won't, sis. I'm not that stupid."  
  
Derik giggled, "Yeah right, Garet. Don't listen to him, Isaac, he'll eat anything that looks like food!"  
  
Garet raised a fist, "Why you little….." he snarled. Then he grinned again, but angrily.  
  
"Where is Dora? She's late…." said one of the monks.   
  
She won't come… We promised not to see each other, but….. I wish she was here to say goodbye…..  
  
I looked at the floor sadly.  
  
"Oh, I forgot!" Derik squealed. "I have something to give you, Isaac. Aunty Dora wanted you to have this…" He stuck out his short little arms and placed a bracelet in my hand.  
  
It was mom's Catch bead bracelet…. Her mother had given it to her and now she gave it to me….  
  
Each bead was actually a piece of Psynergy stone that was made long ago. Each bead contained a small amount of Psynergy but when put together, it can be powerful. Well, these beads are very old and they can only manipulate small objects, so it's not that strong.   
  
But still, it's mom's most cherished item. I tied it around my wrist.  
  
I smiled and thanked Derik. I'll take good care of it, mom.  
  
Garet sighed, "I guess we're all ready to go now."  
  
"Think again, Garet!" Kaylina cried out.  
  
"What?" Garet asked. He raised a brow as his sister glared at him.  
  
Garet's mother sighed, deeply. "It must be very difficult for Dora. As Garet's mother, I know how Dora feels. I still have Garet's father, but Dora only has Isaac." She looked at me with sadness, "She doesn't want you to go, Isaac, but she knows you have to go and it hurts to see you leave."  
  
All the villagers nodded in agreement. The mayor laughed out loud, "If we keep standing here, they'll never leave! Now, everyone," he turned to the villagers, "One final, farewell!"  
  
All the villagers took a deep breath……  
  
"Farewell!!"  
  
"Good luck!"  
  
"Take care!"  
  
"Come back safely!"  
  
We smiled and waved goodbye as we headed out the gate. I'm going to miss Vale.  
  
I've never left Vale before. I only did when it was berry-picking season. Mother and I would go out into the nearby forest to pluck sweet, red berries for pie and cake. I'm going to miss her cakes…..  
  
We walked for a little while in silence until Garet yawned and stretched. "I'm hungry…." he groaned.  
  
"We just had breakfast. How can you still be hungry?" I asked. I was still full.   
  
"Because I'm nervous. Whenever I'm nervous, I'm hungry…." he answered.  
  
"Nervous? There's nothing to be nervous about. Even though we're going to be far away from home….. We will get this over with. You and me together, we'll save Jenna and Master Kraden and go home with the Stars…. Nothing to worry about…." I said cheerfully. I was trying to lighten up our mood. To make our quest seem more simpler. I sighed.  
  
I only wish it were….  
  
"Maybe if I sing a song, that might ease me up," he said. He cleared his throat and hummed a few notes.  
  
I tried not to laugh, "You sing? Yeah right."  
  
He gave me a look, "What? Grandpa always sang this song to me when I was little. He said all the people of Vale used to sing it back in the 'good old days of Vale.'"  
  
I rolled my eyes. I've never seen or heard Garet sing in his entire life. This is going to be funny…..   
  
"Let's see how it goes now…." he thought. We walked for another short while and still, Garet couldn't remember his song.   
  
We walked and walked until I felt something bump into my legs…..  
  
"Ouch!" squealed a little, brown creature that ran into me. It shook it's head and looked up at me with little blue eyes.  
  
"Hey there, little guy," I said quietly in a soothing voice, "Are you okay?"  
  
"That's one odd looking thing…." said Garet.  
  
"Watch where your going!" it squealed angrily then it turned around sharply. It looked frightened when it saw a little blue rat carrying a fork. The rat squeaked loudly and charged right at us…..  
  
It was actually far away and it was advancing towards us in a very slow speed. Probably because of it's short legs…. It had it's fork raised and it ran and ran as fast as it could towards us.  
  
"Please help me!" the little brown creature squealed. "That Vermin has been chasing me for a long time!"  
  
"Um…. Sure I guess." I answered. I stood out in front of the brown creature and Garet. I stood an waited for the rat to approach kicking range. But it was taking too long.  
  
Ah, to hell with it.  
  
I walked towards the rat instead. It squeaked angrily at me and it swung it's fork back and forth. I stared hard at it. Then I kicked it. Yes, I kicked it. The rat flew far across the road and into the forest, squealing angrily at me but it faded as it got farther.  
  
"Wasn't so hard," I said proudly, hands on hips, and with a big grin to go with it.  
  
Garet rolled his eyes at me but the little, brown creature jumped up and down happily.  
  
"Thank you! Thank you!" it squealed. Then it stopped and looked carefully at us. It's eyes widened, "You… you're both Adepts!"  
  
We nodded.  
  
" I have been searching for Adepts who have potential and strength. Please, may I ask to join you?"  
  
"Join us?" Garet asked, confused. He scratched his head, "What exactly are you?"  
  
"Oh! Forgive me!" the creature bowed in front of us, "I forgot to introduce myself. I am Flint, a Venus Djinn."  
  
Djinn? I'm sure I heard that word before…..  
  
"Oh! So that's what a Djinn is," Garet said, surprised, then he looked at my confused face, "Don't you remember Isaac? Kallis and the Wise One told us about these things."  
  
Oh yeah, now I remember.   
  
"Right. Kallis told us to look for these. But what do they do?" I asked him.  
  
He shrugged and we both looked at Flint. Flint looked like he was smiling but I don't see his mouth anywhere….  
  
"I can aid you in battle!" he squealed happily.  
  
I raised a brow.  
  
"We may not look like much, but we, Djinn, can use powerful Psynergy."  
  
"Wait a minute. We? So there's more than one of you?" Garet asked.  
  
Flint nodded. "Yes, but we all got separated when the mountain erupted," he sad sadly. "But if you help me look for my brothers, sisters, and friends, I'm sure we'll be a big help to you!"  
  
"Well… alright then. I guess you could come along. The more the merrier, right?" I said. Flint squealed happily.   
  
"Thank you so much, sir!" he said.  
  
"My name is Isaac and this is Garet," I pointed out.  
  
"Nice to meet you. And Isaac, you are a Venus Adept. Am I right?" Flint asked.  
  
I nodded.  
  
"Then I am more suitable with you because I am a Venus Djinn."  
  
"Um, okay."  
  
So we headed off again with our new friend, Flint, who followed right behind us. He had to jog to keep up with us. Poor little guy.  
  
"Hey," I said to Flint, "Why don't you just jump onto my shoulders? It'll make it easier for you."  
  
"Really?!" Flint panted, "I would love to!"  
  
I kneeled down for him to jump on. Then we headed off again. Garet was still trying to remember his song. He could remember only the first part of the song which he sang a few times, trying to remember the rest:  
  
The road is long and winding  
  
  
  
  
  
But you most never give up  
  
For the end is closer then you think  
  
So sing loud and cheerfully  
  
……….  
  
Then he forgets the rest…  
  
We walked and walked and stopped once to eat lunch and headed off again. We crossed a bridge. It was starting to get dark and luckily we spotted a town.  
  
I was exhausted. We have walked all day and my feet hurt. Garet kept complaining about his hunger and Flint, thank god, stayed quiet.  
  
"Ooh! A town! Let's go to the inn and get something to eat!" said Garet. He jogged into town.  
  
A man at the entrance saw us coming in. "Welcome, travelers! Welcome to the town of Vault, the heart of Angara!"  
  
"A very nice town you have," Garet said politely, "Where is the inn? We've been travelling all day and we're hungry."  
  
"Right over there," the man pointed to his right. I spotted the inn, one house away.   
  
"Thank you, kind sir," I said and we headed towards the inn.  
  
"Wait!" the man called, "I just wanted to tell you to be careful of thieves roaming around. Lots of things have been stolen from people lately."  
  
We nodded. "Thanks for the warning," I said and we entered the inn.  
  
It smelled wonderful inside. The aroma of freshly baked bread and just-made soup filled the air. It smelled good….  
  
The middle-aged woman smiled and greeted us as we came in, "Welcome wary travellers. Would you like a nice warm meal and a room for tonight?"  
  
"Yes, please!" Garet said excitedly. I could hear his stomach growling. And mine too.  
  
"Very well, boys. That will be 16 coins."  
  
I took out my pouch and handed the money to her. She smiled warmly and gave us the key to our room. Then she gestured to the kitchen.  
  
"The chef has just prepared supper. You boys can sit at the tables and the maid will serve you some food."  
  
"Thank you very much," I smiled warmly back.  
  
The kitchen dining room was almost full of people. I managed to spot one free table beside the wall. I dragged Garet over to it and we sat down, exhausted.  
  
I sighed in relief. My legs and feet were killing me. And I just want to quickly eat and go to bed.   
  
I looked around. There were so many people. Townsfolk and other travellers. But I didn't see any warriors. And beside us was a kid, about our age, sitting by himself. He looked very worried.   
  
Our food arrived shortly and it smelled so good that I ignored everything around me and dug in. The soup and bread was nice and hot. When I was finished, Garet already ordered another serving. Flint ate some pieces of bread I gave him. Garet wolfed down his food and ordered another serving.  
  
After Garet ordered his fourth, everyone was gone but us, the cook, and that kid who sat by himself. He still had that very worried look on his face.  
  
I wonder what's wrong?   
  
After Garet finished, he yawned, "I'm full. Let's get some sleep. Tomorrow's going to be a very long day."  
  
"Yeah," I agreed as we got up and headed up the stairs. I took one last look at the kid. He hasn't moved ever since we got here. But oh well, it's not my problem….  
  
  
A/N: For those who don't know, no the song that Garet is trying to sing is not mine, but Snoopy6458's. He was really kind to let me use it! Review!!!  
  
Oh and sorry for not putting the whole song, Snoopy. Garet hasn't remembered it yet….  
  
Oh and Kirby, you adorable little guy, Please untie SmashSage so he will take you and the other smashers to Disneyland! ^-^ 


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Hello! I got a very weird review from someone…. But anyways here's chapter 8.… hehehe.  
  
Chapter 8  
  
Isaac's POV  
  
Oh crap! Where is it?! Where is it?!  
  
I frantically looked under the bed, under the covers and everywhere in the room, and still I couldn't find my coin pouch. I know I placed it on the table last night…..  
  
Flint and Garet woke up, startled by my frantic search. I didn't really mean to wake them up, but, I couldn't afford to search too carefully. I was freaking out. The Mars Star…. Oh, I can't lose that…..  
  
"Hey, what are you doing?" Garet yawned. He looked half asleep. Flint looked dazed.   
  
"I'm looking for my money! I know I putted it on the table last night. And now it's gone!" I whispered loudly. People are still asleep in the inn, and I shouldn't wake them up or else they'll be very grumpy with me.  
  
"What? Can't you wait till morning?" Garet yawned again.  
  
"It's already morning."  
  
"No it's not. The sun's not up yet."  
  
"It is up!" I yanked the curtains away from the windows and beams of sunlight shone through the window. Garet and Flint both squinted.   
  
"Now that you're both up, help me find my pouch," I said as I started my frantic search again.  
  
Garet moaned. Flint yawned. But they both got out of bed anyways.   
  
Oh, where the hell could it be?!  
  
I looked under the bed again, under the table, everywhere. I cried out in frustration, "Where is it?!"  
  
Garet shrugged, "Hey, don't worry about it. I still have my money. I think…."  
  
Garet searched his bag. Then he froze. "My money… It's gone too!"  
  
He started to freak out too. We both searched under the beds, again, under the covers, everywhere. And still…. We found nothing.  
  
"Not only is my money gone, so is the Mars Star…" I groaned.  
  
"What?!" Garet and Flint both cried out.   
  
"I had the Mars Star in my pouch," I answered.  
  
Garet shook his head in frustration. "I bet you that it was those creepy guys. Umm…. What were their names again?…. Oh yeah, Saterus and Melody."  
  
"It's Saturos and Menardi," I corrected him.  
  
Again, he rolled his eyes at me. "Whatever," he mumbled.  
  
I shook my head. "No, it couldn't have been them. Why would they take our money then?"  
  
Garet shrugged.  
  
"Um, may I ask why you two have the Mars Star?" Flint asked.  
  
Garet and I looked at him. "I mean, the Mars Star is a very sacred jewel that is supposed to be sealed within Sol Sanctum. How did you two obtain it?" Flint continued.  
  
"Well…. " I began. We told him what happened on Mt. Aleph and how it erupted. Then we told him that we were on a journey, or more like a mission, to retrieve the other three Stars from the thieves who took them and to rescue Kraden and Jenna.  
  
Flint closed his eyes. "Very interesting….." he said, "So the Wise One gave his trust in you two. It may be fate that lead me to you. The Wise One told all of us Djinn, before the eruption, to: 'Seek those who have been chosen by fate who bears the destiny of the world.'"  
  
Flint looked at both of us. "You both have a dangerous path to follow but I, Flint, a Venus Djinn of heart, will offer my strength to aid you," he spoke, proudly.   
  
"I'm truly grateful, Flint," I said.   
  
We need all the help we can get. I'm glad Flint will lend us a hand for the hardships that I know will soon come….  
  
"But anyways," I continued, "First, we need to find the Mars Star!"  
  
"…… Right," said Flint as I dropped on my hands and knees and looked under the rug. I found nothing.  
  
"Hey, why don't we tell the lady downstairs? Maybe she can tell us if she saw any suspicious looking guys," Garet suggested.  
  
I sighed. "Okay, I guess…" I moaned.  
  
We both changed our clothes and packed our things. Then I noticed something…..  
  
"Great….. My sword's gone as well, Garet," I said.  
  
"Mine too. You don't suppose whoever took our money took them too?" Garet asked.  
  
"Probably…"  
  
When we went downstairs, I could smell frying bacon. My stomach growled.  
  
The inn lady greeted us. "Good morning, boys. How about some breakfast?"  
  
Garet shook his head, "I wish we could, ma'am, but our money and swords were stolen from our room."  
  
"Oh dear…" she said, a little shocked. "That's terrible…"  
  
"Yeah," I said, "I was wondering if you saw any suspicious people last night that could have done this."  
  
The woman shook her head. "No, no one came in last night. But, there has been a lot of robberies lately when three nice fellows arrived two days ago. But I'm not accusing them of doing such crimes. They were nice and they gave me cash." She smiled warmly.  
  
"Oh…." was all I could say.   
  
"They are in one of the rooms upstairs, if you want to ask them anything." she added.  
  
"Thank you, ma'am." said Garet and we headed upstairs. There were only four rooms and I knocked on the first door to my left. It was only an elderly man. I apologized for bothering them and knocked on the second door.   
  
Two men answered. One was taller than the other, a little shorter than Garet, and he had a small scar on his left cheek. The shorter one wore a red bandanna over his head.   
  
"What you want, kid?" the man with the scar asked.  
  
"Um, I was wondering if you saw any thieves around here. Some of our stuff's been stolen this morning and, well…." I trailed off.   
  
They both looked at each other then the man with the scar said, "We ain't seen nothing. Now get lost." Then he slammed the door.  
  
I looked at Garet and he shrugged. "Hmph. It's them. They're the thieves," I grumbled as I walked back downstairs.   
  
"Yeah. It must be them. They look suspicious enough." Garet agreed. "So…. What do we do now?"  
  
"Well…." I said as I headed outside, away from the smell of breakfast, "We can't just go in accusing them of being thieves. We need to somehow prove that they are."  
  
"So… how do we do that?" Garet asked.  
  
I shrugged. Garet set out a long sigh. "Well, since they must've stolen a lot of stuff in Vault, we could find they're stash somewhere." I suggested.  
  
Garet shook his head, "That could take days!"  
  
I nodded and sighed.  
  
"Excuse me?" said a voice behind us that made all three of us jump.  
  
I turned around and saw that kid from last night. The one with the worried expression. He had short, but neatly cut, blonde hair. Purple eyes. And he held a wooden stick that looked just like Jenna's.   
  
"Yes? What would you like?" Garet asked him.  
  
"Um… I couldn't help overhearing what you two were talking about. I, too, have had something stolen from me by thieves. And I think I know who they are…" the kid timidly, said.  
  
"You do? Well we kind of know who they could be too. What's your name?" I asked.  
  
"Oh, sorry. I am Ivan," said Ivan, "And you are…" He closed his eyes and raised his hand, palm facing towards me like he was….. Using Psynergy. A faint purple aura surrounded him and I felt something….. Something in my mind….   
  
Then Ivan opened his eyes again. I shook my head to get rid of that strange feeling.   
  
"Nice to meet you, Isaac and Garet. Oh, and Flint too," Ivan said with a timid smile.  
  
I looked at him shocked, "How did you…..?"  
  
Ivan chuckled, "Oh, I'm sorry. I can read minds. It's a special technique that I have. I really don't know why…. But I can and I never knew it was called Psynergy."  
  
Garet and I both looked at each other, thinking the same thing: "R…read minds? Wow… That's awesome!" said Garet. He looked wide-eyed at Ivan with interest. I guess I did too because I was amazed by Ivan's power.  
  
"I can share my power. Let me show you…." said Ivan as he held my hand and approached Garet. Ivan closed his eyes and the purple aura surrounded him again. But this time it surrounded me too.  
  
I felt my consciousness slip away from my mind and into Garet's… I saw Garet's memories, and his thoughts and feelings…   
  
" What are they doing? And what's with that purple glow?"  
  
It was Garet's voice! Then in an instant I was back in my body. I grinned. "Hey. That's pretty cool. I read your mind, Garet."  
  
"What? But how?" he asked, surprised.  
  
Ivan took his hand and approached me. Ivan closed his eyes and read my mind again. This time I felt two presences in my mind…. Garet's and Ivan's.  
  
Garet shook his head when he came to. "Wow. That's amazing…. I read your mind too, Isaac," he said excitedly.   
  
Ivan chuckled. "This may sound strange but, I was wondering if you both could help me…." he asked, quietly.  
  
Garet and I both waited patiently for him to continue. "My master, Master Hammet, his rod was stolen from us when we arrived in Vault," Ivan continued, "Master trusted me to take care of it. But somehow those thieves took it. I had been suspecting that those three strangers that you both suspect as well are the thieves. I tried to read their minds but I can't get close enough to them…. So, I was wondering if you guys could somehow restrain them so I can read their minds…"   
  
"Hmm, that's a good idea. If you can read their minds then we'll be able to know where our stuff's been hidden. But wait, won't they know that you're reading their minds?" I said.   
  
Ivan shook his head. "Normal people can't see Psynergy. Only Adepts," Ivan answered.  
  
I grinned.   
  
With Ivan's power, we can prove to the people of Vault that they are thieves.   
  
So the three of us went back inside the inn. The inn lady welcomed us and we told her that we forgot something in our room.   
  
I knocked at the thieves door. The two same men from before opened up. Scar face looked at me angrily.  
  
"What you want now, kid?" he grumbled.  
  
"We have some things to ask you, if you don't mind," I said.  
  
"I told you we ain't seen nothing. Now scram!"   
  
Before he slammed the door shut, I stuck my foot in the way. And that hurt…..  
  
Garet threw his body into the door, pushing it open. The four of us, well three since Flint hid in my bag, charged in. I didn't see the third thief anywhere. But the two that are here glared at us angrily.  
  
"That weird kid's with 'em this time!" said bandanna.   
  
Scar face cracked his knuckles and grinned, "You damn kids are gonna pay fer breakin' into our room…"  
  
Great….. There's going to be a fight….  
  
Garet stood beside me and whispered, "I'll take down the tall one. Isaac, take down the shorter one. And Ivan, try to read one of their minds."  
  
We all nodded. "Then…. Ready?……."  
  
"We're gonna have fun with you before boss gets back…." said bandanna. He took out a sword, my sword.   
  
Using my own weapon----  
  
"GO!!" Garet yelled out and he jumped and tackled Scar face down while I tried to get close to bandanna. Bandanna swung my sword at me. It missed. He held it tightly in his fist and grinned. I can't get close to him. He laughed.  
  
Behind me I could hear Garet wrestling with his opponent. Bandanna leapt forward and thrust my sword down at me. I dodged to the side in time and grabbed his wrist that held my sword. I managed to yank it out of his grasp and leapt away from him. This time I grinned. Bandanna cursed at me and brought out a hidden knife.   
  
"Garet! Isaac! Let's go!" I heard Ivan yell. Garet and I quickly retreated back out the door and out the inn. We hid near the mayor of Vault's house which Ivan knew.  
  
I was filled with excitement and adrenaline from the fight. I've never been in a serious battle before….. I held my sword up for both of them to see, "Got my sword back," I said.  
  
Ivan grinned and said, "They are the thieves. They stole so many valuables in town. And they hid it in the roof of the inn."  
  
"The roof? Why there?" Garet asked. He was sweating and panting. He had a tougher battle than I had.   
  
"Because something fell from the sky and made a hole in the roof yesterday. I saw a carpenter working on this morning. Come on, we should hurry and check out the roof before they suspect anything," Ivan said and he quietly ran back to the inn. We did too, with caution.   
  
I was relieved when I didn't see those guys follow us. I saw Ivan clamber up the stairs quickly. I followed hastily.   
  
Inside was all dusty and cobwebs hanged from all over. But it looked like some people were here just recently. Footprints were all over the place on the dust-covered floor. I followed Ivan into the next room. This room was full of crates and bags.   
  
This must be all the stolen stuff….  
  
I opened one of the bags and saw it was full of jewellery and gold encrusted items. We all looked in each crate and bag. Then I heard a muffled voice coming from a dark corner.  
  
It was a man. He was all tied up and had a tight cloth wrapped over his mouth. I quickly cut his ropes with my sword and he quickly untied the cloth.  
  
"Thank you," the man said. "I came into this loft while I was fixing the roof… when I tried to look farther ahead, WHAM! Someone whacked in the head from behind! When I woke up, I was all tied up..."  
  
"Don't worry, sir," I reassured him, "We know who did it."  
  
"Really?" he asked, surprised. "Well, I am Francis. And…." He trailed off after noticing the large amount of crates lying around…. "Where did all these crates come from? I fixed this roof before and I don't remember seeing them."  
  
"Well, sir…" Ivan began, "These crates are full of valuables that those thieves, who had tied you up, have stolen. They hid them here and my friends and I have some things of ours stolen from them. So that's why we are here…."  
  
"Damn it, you fool! They found us out!" came a roaring voice from the doorway.  
  
The two thieves from earlier and a third one stood there, glaring and smirking at us. The third thief, possibly the leader, was the same height as Scar face but he looked more stronger than the others. He held a shiny blade that glinted in the dim light. His long brown hair was messy and tangled over his shoulders. Scar face also drew a sword, Garet's sword, and smirked. While bandanna drew out his knife and glared directly at me.  
  
"That meddling kid of Hammet. I knew you would get in our way…" said the leader. Then he looked at me and Garet, "And I see you made some friends."  
  
Scar face looked at us sternly, "It was them, . They're the ones who broke into our room."  
  
"Pah! A bunch of kids and you two pathetic fools couldn't take care of them?" the leader asked, raising a brow towards them. They both sank back in embarrassment. "Heh, and by the way," he continued, staring at Ivan, "Your poor Master Hammet has been caught by thieves worse than us in Lunpa."  
  
"What?!" Ivan yelped.   
  
"Lunpa?!" Francis said out loud, "A man with Master Hammet's money should never go near Lunpa!"  
  
Ivan had a very worried look while me and Garet had a confused look. "What kind of place is Lunpa?" Garet asked.  
  
Francis frowned, "That town was named after its founder, Lunpa, who was a noble thief…."  
  
"And the family of thieves remained noble even when his son, Donpa, took over," the leader commented with a grin.   
  
"But Donpa's son, Dodonpa is an evil thief," said bandanna with a frown.  
  
"I've heard he's truly vicious…" said Scar face.   
  
This mad Ivan more worried. His fists were clenched and he had his eyes closed tightly. He shook his head and whispered so quietly that I must've been the only one who heard him, "I must save him…."  
  
"But enough of that talk. We got some serious business with you bunch of kids," the leader said, cracking his knuckles. "If you let us go quietly, we won't hurt you. But, If you don't… Then we'll have to do something about that. So what are you kids gonna do?"  
  
"That's a very simple decision," Ivan spoke in a spiteful tongue. "We're not going to let you go so easily after what you have done to this town…." He looked at them angrily. The thieves looked at him back with cold eyes.  
  
"Heh he he he. Stupid little brat. Then we're going to have to do this the hard way…."  
  
The leader swung his sword at Ivan but Ivan ducked and jabbed one end of his stick into the leader's stomach, making him cry out in pain. Then Ivan quickly jumped back from his counter attack.   
  
Ivan grinned, "You don't seem so challenging, bandit."  
  
The leader clenched his fists and bared his teeth. "Get him, you fools!" he barked at his two comrades. Scar face and Bandanna charged at Ivan, weapons raised.   
  
Luckily Ivan was small and quicker than them that he managed to evade their attacks. I couldn't stand by and watch anymore. I raised my sword and swung at Scar face. He saw my attack and blocked it with Garet's sword.   
  
I could feel my adrenaline rush through my body. I grinned. Although fighting is dangerous, it makes me feel like a warrior….  
  
Scar face backed away and thrust Garet's word towards my stomach. I swung my sword down to make his hit the floor then I smacked him over the head with the flat side of my blade. He went, out cold.  
  
I looked over at Garet. He was managing his opponent quite fine. In his hand he held a fireball, which amazed Bandanna who was backed into a corner, cowering. He dropped his knife and whimpered, "Don't hurt me!"  
  
Garet grinned evilly at him, "Aww, why not? I was just about to have fun…." Garet raised his arm as if getting ready to throw the fireball, making Bandanna squirm with fear. But Garet closed his hands tightly and the fireball disappeared. Garet picked up the thief's knife away.  
  
"Garet, here's your sword. Get my sheath from him, would you?" I asked as I handed over his sword and sheath.   
  
Ivan didn't seem to have any problems handling the leader bandit. Ivan was too quick for him to get a hold of Ivan. Ivan kept whacking him over the head till he was out cold like Scar face.  
  
The three of us looked at each other, proud at what we just did.   
  
Francis was a little shaky from witnessing a fight. "I can't believe you three defeated them…. For a minute I thought we were goners…" he said. Then his face lighted up, "Hah ha! We got them! I'll go get the mayor!"  
  
Then Francis ran out leaving us alone with two knocked out thieves and one who seems to have seen a monster or something. Bandanna was looking at Garet with fear.   
  
"Now I need to find Master Hammet's rod…" Ivan mumbled to himself as he searched the crates. I too, searched them for my pouch. There was so much stuff in them…. Boots, clothes, books, cutlery, rings….. And any other thing a thief might consider valuable.  
  
"Hey, Isaac! Found your money and mine, too!" Garet called out.   
  
Ivan had also found his rod, which to me, looks like another stick but a little fancier. Ivan smiled and said, "Now I will go to Lunpa and save Master Hammet. What will you two do?"  
  
"Us? Well…" Garet shrugged, "We're going to go after Felix and the others…"  
  
Ivan looked confused. He raised his palm towards my face and he read my mind again. That odd feeling in my head… I was getting used to it.  
  
"HEY! He's reading you're mind again! Shouldn't we stop him?" Garet said, angrily.  
  
Ivan was done before I could say anything. He looked a little sad, "I see…. So that's what happened…"  
  
I nodded.  
  
  
When the mayor arrived, the bandits were all tied up and they were awake. Francis came back with the mayor and some officials who hauled them away to a cell. The three thieves glared angrily at us and told us that they won't forget what happened and we'll regret it. The mayor thanked us and gave us a reward: five-hundred coins. And he reassured Ivan that Master Hammet is still alive because Dodonpa's probably a smart thief. He would use Hammet to gain a large ransom from Kalay. So no harm would be done to Hammet.  
  
"We can do nothing until Dodonpa makes his move. Don't worry, Ivan. Hammet is safe…. For now," said the mayor. "Isaac, I would like you to come see me before you leave. I have something to give you." Then he thanked us again and left.  
  
Ivan looked worried. "Cheer up, Ivan! It's the first time I've ever beaten up a thief. Though I didn't really beat him up, wish I could, but anyway, that was exciting! We're heroes!" said Garet.   
  
Ivan had a small smile and I couldn't help but grin.   
  
Heroes…. That's something I never dreamed about. Helping others and slaying beasts, that's a hero. But are we really heroes? I should be a hero. We should be heroes…. I mean, why not? We're already on a quest to save the world…   
  
"Hey, Garet, let's become real heroes," I said. Ivan and Garet both looked at me. "We should go and help those in need," I continued.   
  
Garet rubbed his chin. A big grin spread across his face, "That's a great idea! If we can save people, we can save the world! We will be legendary…. Alright Isaac, lets do it!"  
  
Me and Garet high-five and clasped our hands together, our sign of being best friends. Back when we were little, Garet and I would always greet each other like that. But when we were mad at each other, we would always get into a one-on-one fight with our wooden sticks to settle it. At the end, we always laugh together at how stupid it was to get mad at a simple thing. Our friendship has never been broken and it has grown stronger as we grew.   
  
Ivan and Flint chuckled. Then Ivan said, "I really want to go save Hammet. But I couldn't ask you two to help me."  
  
Ivan raised a hand before I could say anything. "You both have to get going on your mission… I saw everything in your minds," Ivan continued. "What a discovery… I never knew a volcano would hold such a secret!"  
  
Garet and I nodded. "Yeah, we have to find Felix and his gang to stop their evil plans," said Garet.  
  
Ivan nodded. Then with a sad smile he said, "Then this is goodbye, then."  
  
"Nah, not really a goodbye. We'll probably run into each other again some day," I said cheerfully. Though I felt a little said too, parting with my new friend….  
  
Ivan smiled, "I'll never forget you both. Oh and Flint, too. I wish you all the best…" He shook our hands and left.   
  
Garet rubbed his shoulder, "Man, ramming into that door was a little painful than I thought. Come on, let's get going."  
  
I nodded, "Yeah, let's go see the mayor."  
  
We climbed down the roof and headed for the mayor's house. The mayor greeted us with kind old eyes, "Welcome, boys. I can't thank you two and Ivan enough. As a promise, here."  
  
He handed me a golden bottle. "It's called Water of Life. This sacred water has tremendous healing capabilities. I think it will aid you on your journey." said the mayor.  
  
"Thank you, sir," I said. I placed the bottle in my bag.  
  
"By the way, are you heading out to Goma Range, by any chance?" the mayor asked.  
  
"Umm, I guess so…" I said, nervously. I didn't really know where Goma Range was….  
  
The mayor smiled, "Look for a cave in the mountains of Goma Range, northeast of here. Once you passed it, you'll reach Bilibin."  
  
"Alright, thank you so much, sir," I said.  
  
"Don't thank me, boys. You helped this town so much by capturing those thieves!"  
  
We laughed and said goodbye. Garet and I left the town of Vault and headed northeast. Into Goma Range…. I think….  
  
  
A/N: Mwa ha ha! Finally done…. Sorry it took so long. I kind of slacked off over the Christmas break….^_^;;  
Heh heh, sorry! By the way, thanks for reviewing and please keep reviewing! Bye!! 


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Hello, everyone! I'm finally back with this story. Hope you enjoy!

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Chapter 9

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Isaac's POV

The road is long and winding  
  
  
  
  
  
But you most never give up  
  
For the end is closer then you think  
  
So sing loud and cheerfully  
  
  
  
While you still can  
  
Cause soon you will be home  
  
With your journey being a fading memory  
  
So sing loud and cheerfully

………….um

"Ack, I can't remember the last part…" mumbled Garet. He's been trying to sing his whole song ever since we left Vault. He managed to remember the second part after singing and humming to himself. 

The sun was high in the sky, making the country side shine with beauty. It was also hot. Hot summer weather. A little wind would be nice….. I was sweating from the heat.

Garet, Flint, and I are walking in Goma Range…. I think. I'm not really sure, but Flint says we are.

"Goma Cave should be around here. Just listen for a waterfall," said Flint, cheerfully. He was perched on my shoulder. It seems like he enjoys having a free ride….

Up ahead, I could hear rushing water. Must be a river. We headed towards the source of the sound.

"Hey, a river," said Garet as he bent down and scooped some of the cool, clear water and drank. I did as well. The water was cold and refreshing.

"We're near," informed Flint. He jumped down and hopped ahead and disappeared into the trees.

I refilled my water bottle. "Lets hurry," I said to Garet who took another sip of water.

The sound of a waterfall was near. Then I heard a scream ahead of us, where Flint headed.

I sprinted and saw Flint running towards me with fear on his face. "Help!" he cried and hid behind my legs. There was rustling in the bushes up ahead. 

A monster perhaps?

I drew out my sword. Garet stood beside me and drew out his. The rustling grew louder and I could hear something shrieking inside the bushes….

I clenched my teeth and tightened my hold on the handle. The monster jumped out raging mad….

And I would have fallen on my butt in fear….. If it was a real monster. The monster was nothing but a blue rat like the one before. I laughed, "Flint, it's only a blue rat. Can't you just use Psynergy?"

"Huh? I would if I could! And I wasn't running away from one Vermin, I was…." Flint was cut off by the blue rat's sudden and awfully horrible, loud shrieking. 

Suddenly the bushes started to rustle and move. Then a bunch more blue rats came pouring out, each held a fork, spoon or knife. They too, were shrieking madly.

"…running away from them…"

What's really weird is that they lined up in rows, single file, side by side. The first rat that came out stood in front as if he was a commander….

Garet leaned into my ear and whispered, "Is it just me or are they really lining up like an army?"

"They really are lined up. And it looks like they're planning to attack us…." I whispered back.

"Isaac, the Vermin you kicked before must've been the commander…" Flint whispered. "You two can handle this, right?"

The commander turned and faced his comrades and started shrieking and squeaking to them. He must be giving orders or something. He then jabbed his fork in my direction and all his comrades growled and shrieked.

He probably is the one I kicked. It looks like he remembered me….. 

I sneered, "He's mad at me and now he's going send his army to attack us. I can't believe they're actually this smart."

"This won't be hard for you to beat," said Flint, who was now on my shoulder, "Just make an earthquake, Isaac, and they'll fall over, begging for mercy."

"An…. Earthquake?" I asked nervously.

Flint nodded. "Yeah… an earthquake. What's wrong with that?" he asked suspiciously.

I flushed with embarrassment. I didn't know how to make an earthquake, or even be able to make a slight tremor. I didn't learn to do that yet….. Because it was hard for me to summon enough energy for it…

"Well… I…" I stammered. I didn't want to embarrass myself but somehow Flint knew what was wrong. His eyes widened with surprise.

"Y, you can't do it? Well then I'll have to teach you quickly before the Vermin attack us," he said.

The army of rats were still listening to their commander's long, annoying speech.

Garet shook his head. "Forget about it. I'll just burn them to a crisp with my fire!"

"I guess we could do that…" I said.

Flint shook his head, "Must you use such harsh tactics?"

"Harsh? What's so harsh about barbequing them? They're only rats after all…" replied Garet.

"But they're living creatures. They're pretty much harmless anyways. Let's just leave them alone…"

"But then they'll come and attack us!"

I stood back and watched them argue. Meanwhile the commander rat finally finished his pre-war speech and now turned and faced us. Then they began to march…

"Hey guys…." I began, but both Flint and Garet ignored me.

"FIRE! That's the plan!"

"NO! I don't want innocent Vermin to get massacred. How cruel is that?!"

Geezes… I was getting really mad. So I took a deep breath and yelled out, "ENOUGH!"

They both stopped arguing and looked at me. "I'll handle this!" I growled.

I leapt forward and sprinted towards the army of rats. They noticed my movement and charged at me, with the commander in the lead. Good. That's what I wanted….

When the commander was close enough, I jumped and kicked him, again, as hard as I could. He was sent flying, higher than before, shrieking madly as ever. His troops halted and watched helplessly as they're commander was sent to the heavens….

I bared my teeth at them and leaped towards them, but they quickly retreated back to the bushes. I laughed. I laughed and laughed…..evilly.

"Ha ha ha! That'll teach you a lesson!" I said proudly.

Garet and Flint both stared at me. Meanwhile, I just grinned. Then finally Flint shook his head, disapprovingly. "That was so cruel…." he said.

"Aww, way to go, Isaac. I wanted some fun too!" Garet whined.

Afterwards, we started to head for Goma Cave again. This time, no monsters got in our way. We spotted a cave on the upper ledge. The entrance was thickly covered in ivy. An up-rooted stump, that was also covered with thick, ivy blocked our path. 

There was a gap between the ledge with the cave entrance, and the ledge that we stood on. The stump was in our way…

Garet stepped forward and used "Move" to move the stump, but it didn't even budge. Garet scratched his chin in thought. "Heh, that didn't work…. I know! Fire!" he suggested.

Flint let out a quick sigh and said, "Fire, fire, fire! Is that all you can think of?"

"Hmph. I am a Mars Adept after all. Fire is my specialty. And if _you_ have a better idea, I'd like to hear it!"

"Well I think…..um…." Flint mumbled to himself quietly, avoiding Garet's gaze.

"Don't use fire, Garet." I said. "The fire could spread and get out of hand."

"Nah. I can control it," he said with confidence.

"It seems like you guys are stuck…." came a familiar voice from behind us.

We turned around and saw Ivan who was looking a little glum. He now held the Shaman's Rod in his hand. 

"Ivan? Thought you went to save Hammet," I said.

Ivan looked down at his feet and lightly shook his head. "There were guards protecting the gates of Lunpa. I couldn't find another way in." Then he quickly looked up at us and said, "Don't get me wrong! I didn't come here to ask for your help."

"Oh?" said Garet.

"Well, you see…. Your quest has been stuck in my head since I left Vault. I couldn't leave knowing that all these terrible things are happening… And so, since I can't rescue Master Hammet, then maybe I can help you…" Ivan said with a small smile.

I pondered that thought……

If Ivan joins us, then we'll surely get through this a lot faster. But then he'll have to go through the dangers of our quest. I don't want to drag him into this mess….

"Don't worry about it, Isaac. I won't mind the dangers." Ivan spoke like he read my mind. Which he did.

"Ivan!" I yelled at him. Then I sighed with grief, "I just don't want to get you involved with this…."

"I already am. Besides, I can take care of myself and also, my powers could be useful to you…", said Ivan as he swung his rod in the air, making circles. Suddenly I could feel the breeze as powerful gusts of wind swirled around the vine-trapped stump and violently pulled the ivy away. In an instant, the stump was free. There was no sign of any ivy left. Well except the ones blocking the entrance.

"Amazing," I said in awe. I've never seen the powers of wind before, and this was my first time.

"Way to go, Ivan! We really could use your help, right Isaac?" Garet said.

I nodded.

"Are we going to Biblin then?" Ivan asked.

I nodded, "Yeah. Hopefully, we'll get there before nightfall."

Garet patted Ivan on the back and used "Move" again to move the stump which easily fell over the cliff and landed in the river. Ivan used his mighty winds to blow open the entrance of Goma Cave. The four of us entered the lighted cave. It was cool and damp inside. Our footsteps echoed along the deep caverns. For some reason there were torches already lit the cave. Someone must be here…

I could feel Flint tense on my shoulder as we went deeper into the cave. "There's a Djinn nearby! I can feel his presence…" Flint whispered, but in a cave it sounded quite loud.

"Really? Is he near?" I asked him.

Flint cocked his head from side to side. "He's near…. Very near. In fact, it feels like he's right behind us….."

"HEY! Flint! Glad to see you're alive!" came a loud, squeaky voice from behind us. 

I turned around but didn't see anybody. "Where's that voice coming from?" Garet wondered. I did too. We looked around but didn't see any sign of whoever just spoke.

"HEY! BAKA! Are you blind?! Down here!" the voice yelled. I looked down at my feet and saw a strange red and orange creature. It had bright blue, beady eyes and a bushy tail.

"Forge? Is that you?" Flint asked. He hopped off my shoulder and went face to face with the creature.

"Baaaka! Of course it's me! Who else did you think I was, huh?" said the creature called Forge, angrily.

This Djinn doesn't seem so polite….

"Flint, why are you with these human children?" he asked sternly.

"Because they're Adepts!" Flint said in haste. 

"Adepts? These children are Adepts?" Forge looked at us with an odd look. "They're nothing but children! Don't tell me they defeated you!"

"What? They didn't defeated me, I joined them!"

"_Joined_ them?! You weakling! We're not suppose to do that! You have to test them first in order to be worthy of our powers!"

"I, I.. Isaac saved me! So I joined him in return…"

"Hmph, you disappoint me."

"Forge…."

Forge ignored him and turned his attention towards Garet. "You. You're a Mars Adept. I would like to test your skills against me," he said in a hard tone. "If you can somehow defeat me, even though you won't, I will let you have my powers. Wanna test your courage?"

Garet grinned. "Heh. Don't get too cocky, little guy. There's no way I would lose to a tiny thing like you," Garet answered, full of confidence.

"Hmph," Forged answered back, "A child like you can never defeat me. You should back out before you get hurt, boy."

"I'm not a child. Argh! Lets skip the small talk and fight!"

"I was thinking the same thing!"

Forge was suddenly wrapped in his own flames. 

"Let's see well you can withstand my Psynergy!" Forge taunted.

"Good luck, Garet!" I said as I stood away from the battle area.

"Be careful!" Ivan added as he stood beside me.

Forge suddenly fired off the ground like a fireball and headed straight into Garet. Garet who didn't see Forge's sudden attack was knocked back by the force. He winced in pain but he quickly recovered and grabbed his sword. The metal blade deflected Forge's second attack. 

"Hah! Try this on for size!" Forge taunted. He breathed in the flames that surrounded his body, then he spewed them out at Garet! The inferno blaze will engulf Garet!

"Garet!" I cried out in worry. I started to run to him but, in a flash, the fire stopped from Garet's own fiery wall. It absorbed Forge's flames!

The wall of fire quickly spread straight towards Forge. He was engulfed! 

"Aack! A small attack like this won't stop me!" Forge cried out. He jumped out of the fire, burned. It didn't seem like he received much damage. His body was surrounded by his own flames again and he charged into Garet. Garet swung his sword, with the flat side, and repelled Forge. Forge's fire blew out and he struggled to get back to his feet. He was still willing to fight, even in his condition….. 

"I, I, I….. Can't be defeated!" Forge squealed with anger. He jumped up but quickly fell down. Forge was too weak to stand.

"Forge!" Flint cried out. He hopped towards Forge's side. "Are you okay?! Say something!"

"Argh…. I lost. I… I'm defeated…." Forge said sadly. "I guess…. I'm now in your hands, boy."

Garet kneeled down beside him. "Heh. A little guy like you can sure put up a pretty tough fight. I feel honoured to have your help, Forge." Garet said with a friendly smile.

Forge smiled back. He flinched as he got up. "Here, I'll heal you," I said as I concentrated my powers onto Forge's burns. Healing was my specialty. As was making life grow.

The burns disappeared and Forge was as good as new. He stood up and jumped onto Garet's shoulder. "I, Forge, Mars Djinn of strenth, am proud to join your quest. And Flint… I'm sorry for what I said before. I…. You're not a wimp. I'm sorry. Will you forgive me?" Forge said quietly.

"Flint smirked, "I forgive you, Forge. See I told you they are Adepts. And they posses great powers as well."

Forge nodded. "Hmph. Children these days…."

They both chuckled to themselves. 

Later on, we explored deeper into the cave. The torches clearly lighted our path. Strange skeleton monsters keep getting our way but we simply defeated them, as their bones were very brittle through age and rot. They scare the hell out of us whenever they jump in front of us or drop from the roof of the cave. 

I wonder. Why are there monsters…..

Another pile of bones fell in front of us in a heap, causing Flint to shriek madly again and Forge to insult him and call him names….

"Baka! Stop being a scaredy-cat!" Forge insulted.

"B, baka? Why do you keep calling me that?! Where'd you learn it?!" Flint snapped back.

"From Squall. Remember? He and Tsunami went on a world trip and they caught onto some of the languages the humans used. That's where I learned it, baka."

"What's a baka?!"

"You."

"What?! What does it mean?!"

"Stupid or idiot, or stupid idiot, baka!"

"Arrgh!! I hate you!"

Meanwhile as they were arguing among themselves, Garet, Ivan and I disposed of the skeletons with ease. Garet chopped the last one down to dust.

"That takes care of it. Hopefully we won't run into anymore…" Garet mumbled while coughing on the dust.

After he said that, more bones came down and formed into more skeletons. The three of us moaned, while Flint and Forge argued. Again, we turned the old bones to dust.

Flint sighed with relief. Forge burst out laughing, at Flint. "Ha ha ha! Flint, you little wimp. You're such a scardy-cat. I'm gonna tell everyone!"

Flint flushed with either embarrassment or anger, "Don't you dare!" he cried.

"I will. Scorch will surely laugh at this!" Forge giggled but stopped abruptly. His face became sad, "Whenever we find him…. And everyone else…"

Flint's tone was softer, "We'll find them, Forge. With the help of the humans, we'll surely find everyone….Right, Isaac?" 

I gave him a reassuring smile and nodded. "We'll find them. Don't worry."

Forge seemed to lighten up a little and smiled (oddly) back. 

We headed deeper into the cave and rarely encountered any more skeletons. There were bats that flew past us every once in a while. Nothing much happened, until we ran into a man, possibly a hiker or a traveller.

"Hello there, boys. Have you se--" the man gasped and pointed a finger right at Forge. "Y, y, you caught that creature? Oh… I wanted to catch it…."

Forge cocked his head to the side. "Hmm. Oh yeah! I remember him," Forge whispered to us. "That man tried to fight me before, but I didn't want to waste my time with an ordinary human. So I ran."

Flint would have raised a brow if he had one. "Ran away?" Flint asked.

"Yeah…" Forge looked sternly at him, "I wasn't afraid or anything. I just didn't want to hurt a normal human."

Normal? That word bothered me a little. Normal people? If they don't have Psynergy, then they are considered normal? Then…. What are we?

"Um… Excuse me?" the man asked when we accidentally ignored him.

I gave him a friendly smile, "Sorry, sir. Um…. So…. As you were saying?"

The man smiled back, "I was thinking of catching that creature as a pet for my son…. But oh well. Since you caught it first, it's yours."

Forge looked angry, "PET?! No way mister! I'm not a pet! I'm a Djinn! And Djinn are powerful! I, I, I can never be considered as a pet!"

"Calm down!" Garet held Forge in his strong grasp. The little Djinn tried to squeeze it's way out but couldn't. Garet held him till he calmed himself down.

Forge sighed. "Curses…."

The man stared at Forge more closely. "Quite an interesting creature… It can talk," said the man. "Well, I guess he's all yours. I'll see if I can find another creature as a pet."

"Take care then, sir." Ivan said politely.

The man nodded and walked away, into the same path we came from.

"A pet?!" Forge grumbled. "Pah! I'm not a pet. Never!"

"Forge, please calm down!" Flint urged the Mars Djinn. 

I sighed deeply. Something tells me this journey will be a very long one…..

"A PET?!"

"Calm down! He was just mistaken…"

I sighed again. 

A/N: AHH! Finally… finished. And note: Tsunami is a Djinn I made up and Garet's song is not mine but Snoopy6458's. And also Snoopy, Garet's getting close to remembering! Give me some feedback on my story, like: is it good, boring, stupid, okay, etc.? 

  



	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Hey there, everyone. I had writer's bloc for awhile. I couldn't think of proper words to use so that's why it took so long… Anyway, in this chapter, there might be some spoilers for Lost Age in Felix's POV. I'm not too sure how accurate I am with the storyline. ( I can't read Japanese after all!) But oh well, we'll know soon enough; GS2 is coming out in April!

****

Chapter 10

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Felix's POV

"Oh, why do we have to stay out here? There's a town nearby…." Jenna complained. She looked towards the lights the town, Bilibin, gave off. 

I sighed, "Because, Jenna. We have a very important meeting with some people."

Jenna raised a brow, which I could clearly see since we were standing close to the fire we have made. "Oh? Like who?" she asked.

"People you don't want to know…." I said quietly. 

"Really? They're so important that we have stay out here in the cold with no food and no soft bed to sleep in?" 

"Umm… Yeah."

"How can you treat me like this! I'm a girl! I don't deserve this kind of treatment! Look at my hair, it's a mess! Look at my clothes, they're dirty!"

"Well…. You're a hostage, remember?"

"I'm your sister, dummy! You can't treat me this way!"

"I know, I know. But Jenna, please, you just have to live with this for a while, 'kay?"

She pouted and didn't say anything after that. She stormed away and sat beside Kraden. They spoke quietly to each other. Meanwhile, Alex was standing under a tree all to himself. It seemed like he didn't bother to know what was going on around him. He just stared quietly at the moon. We were all resting in the countryside near the town of Biblin. We were to meet some people from Saturos and Menardi's clan, the Fire Clan of the North. 

Menardi and Saturos were somewhere…. Probably already meeting with "them".

There was a sudden movement among the bushes. I tensed and drew my sword. Jenna froze and stood up, prepared to fight, while Kraden simply stood back. Alex sensed danger as well as he drew out his own sword.

"Now, now. Aren't you supposed to welcome us?" came a familiar, gentle tone from within the bushes.

Out came two darkly cloaked figures. One was shorter and smaller than the other. I recognized them….

"Karst, Agatio. You're kinda late. Don't you think?" I asked the cloaked figures. I lowered my weapon, but Jenna and Alex were still prepared.

Karst unveiled herself and smirked at me. "Felix,, long time no see," she greeted me. She brushed her red shoulder-length hair away from her pale, grey face. She wore the typical Fire Clan armor, which was black and had an emblem of fire engraved in it. Agatio, the bigger man took his hood off as well and grunted. Agatio's muscular features were easily seen in the shallow light of the fire. His short, light-bluish hair, dangled to one side and his bright red eyes, glowed in the dim light. He stood two heads taller than me and one head taller than Saturos. 

"Where are they?" Agatio asked harshly. 

"Why, we're right here," Saturos spoke, in a calm but bitter tone. He sneered at Agatio and nodded at Karst. Menardi was right behind him. She happily waved at them. 

"Karst, glad you made it," Menardi said.

The younger woman smiled and said, "Hah, I would give anything to see you again, sis."

Menardi gave her little sister a smile, then gave a nod at Agatio who grunted in response.

"What brings you two here?" Saturos asked.

Agatio crossed his arms. "We're here to report your progress of the mission back to the elders. So, did you succeed in getting the Stars?" he growled. 

Saturos smiled bitterly, "Why of course we have them and tomorrow, we're going to light the lighthouses."

"The Mercury Lighthouse is nearby," Menardi added.

Agatio nodded. "Then hurry, there isn't much time…." he said a little softer.

We were all surprised, except Jenna, Alex, and Kraden. Saturos flinched just slightly while Menardi and I gasped.

"What… what do you mean?" Menardi asked.

Karst shook her head sadly. "The village… It's covered in snow."

"Snow?!" Menardi gasped. "It's already that cold?! This is… unbelievable…"

Karst and Agatio nodded. "The cold is becoming unbearable. So we're here on a mission too: to get winter clothing and furs for the villagers," Agatio grunted. 

"And that's not the only problem," Karst added, "There's some kind of dark rift opening up beyond the Mars Lighthouse."

Saturos raised a brow, "A dark rift?"

The red-head nodded. "An opening that distorts time and space… The elders are afraid to go near it. Some kind of dark energy is being released through it…"

Menardi shook her head, "This… this doesn't make sense. What's going on?"

Karst sighed, "The elders say that there's too much elemental energy flowing in the world. There's no balance between the four elements, that's why there's dramatic changes in the weather all over the world. I suppose the dark rift is caused by the elemental energies overpowering one of another."

"The four lighthouses were supposed to contain the energy within the Stars a long time ago; keeping balance and harmony between the elements. If the four lighthouses are lighted again, I believe the energy will be sealed and the dark rift will disappear. Everything will be normal again…"

Saturos smirked. "You sound so much like an elder, Karst."

I could see her blush a light pink as she quickly lowered her gaze, away from Saturos' stare. "Why, uh, thank you, Saturos." She smiled brightly and continued on, "So… you have the Stars, right?"

Saturos nodded, "We do…"

"Good. We're going to head back then. Give us the Mars Star to light the Mars Lighthouse," Agatio commanded in a deep voice. He stretched out his hand…

Saturos crossed his arms and smirked, "Well, about that…. We don't have the Mars Star."

"What do you mean?" Agatio asked in a venomous tone. 

"Well, you see. We ran into a bunch of kids along the way. They got their hands on three of the Stars first, but we forced them to give them to us. But after that, the Sanctum began to collapse and we had to evacuate; leaving two boys behind who had the Mars Star." Menardi explained.

I felt a stab of pain in my heart….. I looked over at Jenna. She was trembling… her hands were clenched tightly to here sides. Kraden looked sadly at the ground and Alex never moved from his position…. He stared coldly at the four Fire Clan warriors. 

"Then the Mars Star is lost?" Karst asked in a whisper.

"I don't believe so. Those boys aren't ordinary humans. They're Adepts, just like Felix and those other two children that are with us." Saturos pointed out.

"I'm not a child," Alex said coldly. He gave Saturos a hard, intense stare. He still didn't lower his sword.

Saturos matched his gaze and grinned, "That is Alex. He has joined us on our mission. He has many great skills a Mercury Adept can possess."

"A Mercury Adept? They're descendents of Lemurians…." Karst mumbled.

"Indeed. Alex here, is a fine warrior. He proved to us that he was worthy enough to join us." Saturos continued.

Alex grunted and walked away.

Saturos smirked once again, "He doesn't seem so trustworthy…. He might be planning something."

"If you suspect such things, then kill him." Agatio commanded.

"There's no need. His skills and judgement come in handy, so we'll keep him around." Saturos commented. He then, turned towards me, "Those boys I've mentioned earlier… They were your friends, weren't they?"

I was surprised he'd ask something like that. I hesitated with my answer, "Yeah… Childhood friends."

"I wonder…. Do you think they're still alive?" he asked.

"I…"

"Of course!" Jenna cried out, startling everyone. "They're alive! I know they are! Right, Felix? Right?" She began to sob. "They are…. I know they are…."

I wrapped my arms around her trembling body.

"Shh. It's okay. They're alive. They have to be. Don't cry, Jenna. Be strong. Be strong." I comforted her the best I could.

Agatio looked annoyed. "Why is that girl with you? And that old man?"

Menardi answered, "They're our hostages. If those boys really are alive, then we'll trade the hostages for the Mars Star. Simple, isn't it?" She smirked. "And besides, she's Felix's little sister. Isn't that cute?"

"Little sister?" Karst asked softly, "You must be happy to be reunited with her again, huh, Felix?"

I nodded slowly. Jenna stopped weeping but she remained in my arms. 

Karst gave me a gentle smile. 

Agatio snorted, "Bah! Let's hurry up. We got to start heading back soon. Saturos, you better hurry and you better not fail us. Fail, then you fail our clan!" He turned and stomped away.

Karst took something out of her pouch, "Felix. Remli wants to give this to you." She handed me a necklace. It was Remli's, the little Fire Clan girl who I used to play games with when I was in her village. This necklace was her most cherished possession…

Why would she give it to me?

"She misses you, Felix." Karst answered my confused look. "She likes you very much. She wanted me to tell you to come back as soon as possible, so she can play hide and seek."

I smiled. Remli loved that game. She loved it a little too much. We always played that game for countless hours, almost everyday when I didn't have anything to do. She was the very first Fire Clan member, besides Saturos and Menardi, to approach me and talk to me. The little one's charm, convinced the other children that I wasn't dangerous. She and some other children seemed to like to play with me, even though I was a human and they were members of the Fire Clan. I also gained the trust of the adults as well, thanks to the children's help. 

I do miss her. 

"Karst. Tell her I'll be back as soon as I can." I said. She nodded, winked and followed behind Agatio's path. 

"Bye Sis! Bye Saturos! Bye Felix!" she called out as she disappeared into the shadows.

Jenna now stood beside me and examined the necklace. The necklace had a small, silver dragon encased in a small, oval, clear jewel. It dangled on a thin silver chain. I secured the necklace around my neck and promised myself, and Remli, that I will take good care of it.

"Get some rest, everyone." Menardi said, with a yawn, "We have lots of travelling to do tomorrow…"

I wrapped my arms around Jenna again. "You okay?"

She sighed, "I want to go home…"

"…..Yeah…. Me too. Let's get some sleep…."

**********************************************************************************

__

Isaac's POV

"He's here somewhere… I can feel him." Flint whispered.

"Or her…" Forge added.

"I know. I know."

"It's kinda dark down here…" Ivan said quietly.

"Yeah," I agreed. 

"Shh! I hear something…" Garet whispered.

We froze and listened. 

I could only hear the echoes of falling water drops on the cold pavement. We were in the underground waterway of Biblin. After Flint told us he sensed another Djinn nearby, we searched all over the town and ended up down here. 

"I don't hear anything…" I whispered.

"Just listen," Garet said quietly.

"Hello?" came a high, shrill voice in the shadows. "Who's there?"

"Forge, be quiet!" Garet warned.

"What? I didn't say anything," the Mars Djinn responded.

"It wasn't you?" Garet asked.

"It came from up ahead," I said. We all became quiet again and waited.

There was a light flapping noise. It got closer and closer as we waited. I could see the outline of a small creature with wings. When it came into the light I saw the little creature's features.

This Djinn was a light purple shade. It had round aqua blue eyes. It had small wings on it's back that kept it afloat. Feathers sprouted at the back of it's head. It gave us a curious look.

Forge and Flint jumped ahead to greet the new Djinn.

"Gust! Glad you're okay!" Forge cried out.

Flint smiled, "It took us awhile to find you."

The new Djinn, Gust, smiled at them, then looked at Garet, Ivan and me. "Did they…?" he began but trailed off. 

Forge nodded, "Yeah, they defeated us. Well actually, defeated me, but Flint chickened out and joined them."

Flint shook his head violently, "No I didn't! They proved to me how strong they are!"

"Baaaka. You wimped out."

"I did not!!" Flint jumped up to kick him.

"Not again…" I grumbled. I grabbed Flint in the air, just before he landed on Forge. "Flint. Forge. Can't you two stop arguing. I'm getting a headache listening to you two."

Flint wriggled in my hands. "He started it!" came his muffled voice.

Forge laughed. "Ha ha! Your master has stopped you! There's nothing you can do now, baka."

Garet sneaked behind Forge and grabbed him too. Garet grinned. "Ha ha. Now _master_ has stopped you. Now, stop this nonsense and lets get out of here."

Gust was giggling the whole time. Tears of laughter fell from his little eyes. "Ah! You two still argue too much." he said. He approached Ivan and looked him over.

"Ivan. Am I correct?" the purple Djinn asked.

We were all surprised at how he knew Ivan's name. Ivan smiled, "You can read minds too…"

Gust nodded. "That's right. And I choose you to have my powers."

"What?!" Forge cried out angrily, "You can't do that. He has to defeat you!"

Gust laughed out loud. "I don't need to. I already know he's worthy to have my strength."

"But! But…."

"Forge, don't worry. I know what I'm doing because I, Gust, Jupiter Djinn of Trust, have chosen Ivan to be my master." Gust said proudly. He flew up to Ivan's eye level.

Ivan gave him a small smile. "Gust, thank you. I am honoured to have you on my side."

Gust flew into Ivan's arms. "Good! Now lets get out of this dark, damp place. I'm hungry." the Jupiter Djinn groaned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I couldn't get to sleep that night. Something I saw earlier today was bothering me… That tree we saw… Near the gate. It looked disturbingly like a human…

Why are the people afraid of it?

Earlier today, people acted strangely towards us. They told us to leave that tree alone and that we came in a middle of a crisis. They also warned us not to go to Kolima for there seems to be rumours of a curse going around in that village, where people are turned to trees…

How very odd…

Tomorrow, we're going to Lord McCoy's palace that's just above the small hill to the north of town. From the looks of it, this McCoy must be very wealthy. So anyway, we're going to ask him what's going on with Kolima and lend a hand with this situation. 

Hey, we're heroes, right? If we can defeat a bunch of thieves, then we can deal with this "curse".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You know, being a hero and all makes me hungry," Garet said grumpily. He was grumpy because he only got one serving of breakfast. We didn't have much money to spare him an extra meal. We practically had to drag him out of the inn when we refused to buy him more food… 

What a pig…

"Quit complaining. After we help the lord, we'll get a big reward. Then you can eat as much as you want," I said. 

"Bah! I'm hungry now!" he said as we walked up the stairs that lead to the lord's palace. 

Two armed soldiers stood guard at the entrance. They spotted us and stopped us.

"Hold it right there, kids. The lord will only meet with brave and mighty warriors." the soldier on the right, said. 

"Kids?!" Garet asked, offended. 

"That's right," the one on the right, said, "You kids just go home now."

"Hey! We're warriors! And we'll prove it too. Come on, lets see what you tin soldiers can do!" Garet said as he raised his fists in front of him.

I grabbed him and held him back. "Garet! Calm down. Lets just talk this out." I said. He calmed down a bit.

"Sorry sirs. My friend here just doesn't like being called a child. But he is telling the truth; we are in fact warriors and we can prove it," I said. I gave them the most serious look I've ever have.

The soldier on the right sighed. "Well, if you're up to it. You may see the lord." he said.

I did a little victory dance in my head. I gave him a smile and winked at Garet and Ivan. Garet rolled his eyes and Ivan smiled back at me. Good thing those Djinn aren't with us, they'll surely start yelling at the guards. Especially Forge…We left them back at the inn we stayed in so we didn't look too obvious with them riding on our shoulders.

The other soldier protested, "What?! You can't let them in. They're only children!"

"Nobody else seems up to the challenge. What do we have to lose, hmm?"

The soldier scratched his head and sighed. "Alright. I shall let you pass. Follow me."

The soldier entered the palace and we followed. Inside, I could smell wonderful aromas of meals being prepared somewhere. I couldn't see where, but it smelled good. I could hear Garet mumbling about food. The hallways were brightly lit by candles and torches. There was a red carpet on the main hallway. The soldier disappeared into the doors at the end of this main hallway.

We quickly pursued him. Inside, there stood the guard and a man dressed in fine, silk robes. I assume he is Lord McCoy. He had brown hair and a brown moustache and beard. I could hear them murmuring….

"Did yeh get a good look at 'em?" McCoy said. He spoke in a odd way. I've never heard anyone speak with an accent.

The soldier hesitated. He turned towards us as we entered.

McCoy raised a brow. "Come closer, laddy." he addressed me. I did. Garet and Ivan stood on either side of me. He looked at us one by one. "These the ones yeh were talking about?" he asked the soldier.

The soldier nodded. Again, McCourt looked at us one by one. "They're but children!" he said, a little surprised.

I frowned. 

Children? Ha! Stupid adults… Why do they have to treat us like this?

I looked over at Garet who glared at McCoy. McCoy sighed. "And yeh expect me tae believe yeh can save Kolima?" he asked us. It was a little difficult to understand what he said with his foreign accent. But, I managed to understand most of it.

I nodded. As did Ivan and Garet.

McCoy rubbed his beard. "Yeh're a brave lot, I grant you that…" He reached into his robe and pulled out a golden key. He tossed it onto the table that was in between us. "Here. This key'll get yeh past the barricades tae the east…"

I thought for a moment at what he tried to say… I heard a "barricade" and "east". Put those two words together and I hear that there's a barricade. To the east?

I gave McCoy a questioned look. The man looked sadly at us. "Even with that key, such wee lads as yerselves'll never reach Kolima…"

I tried hard enough to not say anything, but not Garet…

"Goddamn it! Why is he calling us children?!" Garet whispered harshly that only us three could here. "It's so annoying!" 

"Yeah, I know, Garet." I whispered back. "Let's just see if we can prove to them that we aren't."

"Alright then…." Garet moaned.

I turned back towards McCoy. "So, yeh've decided to accept our little job?"

Garet and I nodded. Ivan hesitated.

Garet noticed him. "Hey Ivan! You're not up to it or what?" Garet asked, a little annoyed.

Ivan gripped the Shaman's rod tightly until his knuckles were white. He looked afraid…. "The curse… It can turn people into trees. Do you think we'll stand a chance?"

Garet looked offended. "What? Of course we stand a chance!"

"We're heroes!" Garet and I both said at the same time. It put confidence on Ivan's face.

McCoy burst out laughing, as did the guard. "My, my, my! Heroes?" he laughed some more. Then he suddenly stopped and looked terribly saddened.

"Yeh call yehselves warriors…. But still, yeh naught but wee children…"

Garet glared at him again. I frowned once more.

McCoy continued, "Aye, these are desperate times, but I cannae send such wee lads tae their doom!" With that, he took back the key.

The three of us gasped. 

The soldier looked troubled. "What will happen to Kolima Forest?" he asked.

"We cannae give up hope on our other champions!" he said with confidence.

But… what about us?" Ivan asked meekly. 

McCoy shook his head. "I cannae send yeh to intae certain doom."

Garet was irritated. Badly. "Oh yeah! What if we say we were heading east anyway?" Garet asked harshly.

"Yeh can go once things have settled down." McCoy answered, a little annoyed as well.

"That means, you're not letting us go…" Ivan said, disappointed.

"Ach, fer yer own good, lad."

I clenched my fists. Garet glared. Ivan looked at the floor.

"I dinnae want tae talk about anymore, Captain." he told the soldier.

The captain nodded and approached us. "I'm sorry, boys. But you have to leave."

"Alright." I said. I tried to hide the anger in my voice.

I turned around and left with everyone following my lead. Before we were out of the palace, the captain stopped us.

"Wait. Your name is Isaac, right? Sorry you and your friends were rejected." he apologized.

Garet snorted.

The captain continued, "Something like this, has never happened to Bilibin. Please, will you promise me that you won't go to Kolima?"

I wasn't too sure if I should say no. The man was trying to protect us, and I value that. So I nodded.

He looked relieved. "That's good."

I turned to leave, but he said more…

"That barricade… you may not need a key."

I stopped and looked at him. He winked, "But I didn't say that." Then he returned to his post.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We were back in the inn, where Flint and Forge were fighting again while Gust tried to stop them. I laid in bed, thinking.

"You know, there's a town up north called Imil. Wanna go there?" Gust suggested after we told them our story of McCoy. "We could explore there while they handle things here."

Garet rubbed his chin. "We could do that… Or we could check out that barricade. What do you wanna do, Isaac?"

I shrugged.

"Let me think…"

A/N: The next part is determined by you readers and reviewers! Should Isaac go to Imil or Kolima? If Imil, I'll write a short part of Felix's POV. If Kolima, I'll write a longer part for Felix's POV. So which shall it be? And no saying "either one is fine". PICK one!

And BTW, thanks for reading and reviewing! I especially thank Alex and Snoopy6458 for reviewing each chapter! *sniff* You two make me so happy! Bye now!


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Hello everyone! I'm back with one helluva long chapter. Felix's POV isn't as long as I intended, sorry! I'll try to make it longer in another chapter. It was a two to one vote to Kolima, so Kolima they're going. And by the way, can you believe that Picard's name is now Piers? Ha ha ha! What a dumb name! But that's just me saying. If you like it you like it, I hate it. So anyway, enjoy!

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Chapter 11

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Felix's POV

So cold… In the name of Sol, why is it _so_ cold?! 

My body was numb in the frigid, arctic weather. To make matters worse, we were travelling to Imil in the middle of a blizzard! Travelling to Imil on foot from Bilibin takes two days! The icy winds felt like daggers on my skin. I was practically covered from head to toe in snow. I have to squint in order to see the others ahead of me since everything is white. Saturos, Menardi and Alex were a couple of metres ahead of me, while Jenna and Kraden lagged behind.

We were all trudging through knee-deep snow, so we weren't going real quickly. It might take us more than two days to reach Imil if this weather keeps up.

My nose was constantly running, which annoyed me like the cold annoyed me. I hate this weather.

I couldn't stop shivering as gust after gust of arctic wind swept around me; engulfing me in utter coldness and snow. 

"Ah!"

I suddenly lost my footing and fell into a hidden pit of snow. The snow surrounded me and buried me. I got up quickly, spitting snow and water out of my mouth. Now I was wet. I'm going to freeze to death! 

Jenna and Kraden caught up to me and saw me. They both chuckled shortly and shivered as another gust of wind blew past. "What are you doing in there?! You're gonna freeze to death!" Jenna said as she reached out her hand, her _bare_ hand, for me to grab. 

"Wasn't I freezing to death before I fell in the pit?!" I growled. I swatted the snow in rage and dug a path towards her. I grabbed her hand and pulled myself out of there. 

I shivered like crazy. I couldn't stop it.

"You _really _are going to freeze to death!" Jenna cried out. 

"So are you if we don't find shelter. You're not wearing any gloves! Or pants!" Kraden said in concern. Frost covered his already white beard and hair. He looked ridiculous. We all probably looked ridiculous.

I continued forward, tracing the footprints of Saturos, Menardi, and Alex who led the way. We were so far behind, I couldn't see them anymore. That worried me. 

Where are they?

I took the lead. Hopefully, I'll block most of the wind for Jenna and Kraden. But it was dreadful for me… I was exhausted. Soon I'll be over my limits and I might collapse…

But I won't. I'll keep going. As long as I can hold out in this storm.

I got to keep going! Step after painful step seemed to take minutes, my legs felt frozen, my whole body was stiff and numb, and it was getting dark pretty fast.

Our situation was not good…

"Felix…" I heard Jenna say weakly. "I… I can't go on anymore…" 

"Don't give up!" I shouted over the wind. "Stay strong, Jenna! I… We're almost there!" 

I lied on the last part. There wasn't anything in sight but snow and trees. But hopefully it'll keep her going.

__

Where are they? 

I draped my arms around my body, tightly to keep my self as warm as possible. 

"Ah!" Jenna yelped. She stumbled and fell.

"Jenna!" Kraden cried. He helped her up but she fell back down. Her whole body was trembling.

"Jenna, get on my back." I said. She looked at me in surprise. She shook her head.

"I'll slow you down… Just… leave me here…" she said weakly.

"No way am I going to leave my own sister behind!" I shouted angrily. "Come on, get on my back!" I knelt down in front of her.

"Felix…"

"Quit fighting with me! Kraden, help her."

Kraden tried to help her up but she pulled away. "Felix, you're in no condition to carry me! Leave me! " she said.

"That doesn't matter! You're in no condition to continue on your own and I'm not leaving you. Now is not the time to argue! NOW get on my back!" 

"You should listen to your brother, Jenna." said Kraden. He looked weary and concerned.

Jenna hesitated. "JENNA!" I hissed.

Why does she have to be _so_ stubborn?!

"Alright! Alright!" she said finally. Kraden helped her up and she crawled onto my back.

Her body was cold against mine. I could feel her trembling. I got up slowly. I almost stumbled but I regained my balance.

"You're heavy…" I whispered meekly.

"Oh… shut up…" she countered softly.

It was pitch black all around us as night drew in. Nothing…I could see absolutely nothing. The blizzard still raged on.

"…Felix!"

I heard someone say. But, from where? The wind must have blown whoever's voice that is this far.

"Feeeeeeliiiiixxx!!" someone called again. It sounded like Menardi's. I followed that voice. 

Jenna stirred on my back. "Did you hear that?" she whispered.

I nodded. It was getting difficult to focus… I felt light-headed….

"Feeeeeeliiiiiiiixxxxx!" It _was_ Menardi's voice. It's getting louder, I must be close.

"It's them," I said, feeling more relieved.

Kraden heard it too. He walked up ahead. "Felix! Jenna! It's them! Come on!" he said as he lead the way.

He walked too fast for me to catch up. Jenna's weight was getting to me…. I could hardly move.

Keep going….. Keep going….

"Menardi! Look out!" I heard Saturos say.

There was a deep growl, then an echoing roar. Up ahead, I could barely make out five dark figures in the distance. Six, now that Kraden was among them.

Two of the shadows were abnormally taller than the other three. Plus, they looked like bears standing on two feet. Or maybe they are bears…

I saw a flash of blue as one of the other shadows, possibly Alex, cast a spell that knocked one of the bears down. Then I saw a flash of fiery red as Menardi, or Saturos, cast a fire spell that quickly vanquished the other bear into ash.

The bear that was knocked down never got back up…

Kraden shouted and waved, "Hey! Over here!"

"It's that old man!" I heard Menardi say.

I… I couldn't move anymore…

"Felix…?" Jenna whispered weakly.

My knees buckled below me and fell on them. My breathing was shallow… my muscles ached… my head was woozy…

I just want to sleep…

"Felix?" Jenna said again. "Felix?!" I felt her get off my back. I also heard footsteps coming towards us.

  
"Felix?! What's wrong?" Jenna cried with worry.

Silly Jenna, nothing's wrong…. We're safe…

But I didn't say anything. I was too exhausted…

"Ah! Felix! You're alright…. Right?" Menardi said.

I closed my eyes…. Oh, it felt good. 

"It doesn't look like either of them will make it." I heard Saturos say. "Alex, isn't there a cave we could stay in?"

"No," Alex answered. "But… maybe I could make something like one…"

"What do you mean?"

"Heh heh heh. Just stand around me…" he said in such a calm manner it bothered me.

I opened my eyes to see. Alex stood in front of me, with his back turned to me. He had his arms slightly raised in front of him. A pale blue aura surrounded him. It was the only light source there was.

I could feel it… His Psynergy. It was a tremendous amount that no normal Adept could ever posses… It was definitely far more greater than mine. But, it was not as strong as Saturos' or Menardi's.

His hands started to tremble as was the ground. It surprised all of us. The ground shook even harder as large chunks, no, _walls_ of ice erupted from the ground that rose above the treetops and curved inwards towards us, creating a ice dome. We were surrounded, no wait, _protected_ by this ice dome.

I was so shocked afterwards as the trembling ground stopped. Alex's arms dropped suddenly to his side. He swayed a little on his feet. 

He must've used a lot of Psynergy…

He turned around and met my gaze. I couldn't see his face too clearly, but I saw his blue eyes. They seemed to glow a little. Also, he didn't give me his usual cold stare, he gave me a _worried_ look…

Am I seeing things?

"You alright?" he asked me in a hazy tone. 

My head started to spin… faster and faster… I felt myself fall over. I heard muffled voices, but I ignored them. I just want to sleep… 

…. sleep….

***********************************************************************************

__

Isaac's POV

"You call this a barricade? It's nothing but a bunch of crates stacked on top of each other with a door in the center with a big lock!" Garet cried out. "This is ridiculous, don't you guys say so?"

"Yup, nothing but boxes." Forge agreed. 

"So then, how do we get past here? Knock them down?" Ivan asked. 

I shrugged, "We could climb over. If Kolima is a dangerous place to go to then we should prevent other people from coming in by leaving the barricade alone."

"Hey, how about we burn it down!" Garet suggested, totally ignoring what I just said.

"WHAT did I say before?!" I asked him impatiently.

He scratched his head nervously, "Oh… Right."

"There he goes with the fire again…" Flint muttered. "Such reckless action…"

"Hey! I'm not reckless!" Garet replied.

Ivan and I both raised a brow at him. "What?" he asked.

"You're as reckless as ever, Garet. Now, let's climb over," I said as I looked for a ledge I could use for footing. Not much luck finding any… It was amazing at how precise the people who built it had lined the crates together so perfectly.

"Hey! Look at this!" Ivan called out. "This crate isn't supporting any other crates, so we can move this one without knocking the barricade down."

He was right. The lone crate at the far edge near the river can be easily moved. 

Garet stood beside it. "'Kay, I'll move it. Stand back."

He cast 'Move' to move the crate to the side, revealing an opening. He grinned and lead the way. I moved the crate back in place.

Yup, we all decided to go to Kolima instead of Imil. Actually, _I_ decided for all of us since, somehow, I was the leader.

So we trekked on the path that lead to Kolima. Garet hummed his familiar tune of Vale when suddenly he let out a cry of triumph. "Alright!"

I gave him a weird look, but he continued. "Heh, I finally remember the last part!"

"Of your song?" I asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, listen to the full version now:" He cleared his throat and began:

'The road is long and winding  
  
  
  
  
  
But you most never give up  
  
For the end is closer then you think  
  
So sing loud and cheerfully  
  
  
  
While you still can  
  
Cause soon you will be home  
  
With your journey being a fading memory  
  
So sing loud and cheerfully  
  
Dance with the lady  
  
That dances among the leaves  
  
And do not fret about the end  
  
So sing loud and cheerfully!"

"Bravo!" I cheered while I was trying to suppress my laughter. I was doing a terrible job of it though. Ivan's giggling had sent be bursting into hysterical laughter. The Djinn laughed along with us and soon, a red-faced Garet chimed in as well.

We giggled all the way, till we saw a tree-like village. Must be Kolima.

The closer we got, the more amazed at how the village was made. People actually _lived_ inside trees. The tree stumps were the size of a small house. It was like in those stories of elves I've read in books. It was like a fairy-tale village. The creepiest thing though, was that there were more of those human-like trees all over the place…

"Quite disturbing… looking at these trees." I mumbled.

Ivan approached one and touched it. He jumped back like it bit him. Fear ran over his eyes… 

"Ivan? What's wrong?" Garet asked him.

"This tree… it was a person." Ivan answered.

I looked at each tree. They were so human… "All the people must have been turned into trees…" I said. "But how?"

Garet and Ivan shrugged. Ivan stared at the trees again, with a confused look. "Look. There's all this sparkly stuff everywhere… What do you think it is?" he asked, cautiously.

Sparkly stuff? I looked at the ground, it was shimmering like diamonds in the sun. 

Suddenly I felt a wave of energy hit me, knocking me to my knees. I tried to get up but my body wouldn't move… 

"Ahh! What's happening?!" Garet cried out.

Ivan screamed, "My mind! Someone's attacking my-"

He didn't finish as we all lost control of our body. We collapsed onto the ground. My body was completely limp.

"Isaac!" It was Flint. "Hang in there! Gust, what's happening?!"

"I..I don't know!" the Jupiter Djinn replied. "Look! The sky!"

I moved my eyes to the sky and saw the same sparkly stuff that was on the ground, falling towards us! 

"That sparkly stuff must be what turned those people into trees!" Ivan gasped, "We have to get out of here!"

I tried to move but nothing moved! 

Damn it! Move!

"I can't move!" Garet and I both screamed.

I heard them struggling. It's no use…

It was getting closer…closer… closer…

I closed my eyes and waited for my inevitable end….

….I waited… waited……waited……and waited…. Eh? I don't feel anything.

I opened my eyes. The sparkly stuff was still falling, but it fell _around_ me. There was a blue barrier around me. "Isaac! Are you okay?" Flint asked. He was by my side. I tried to nod.

"What's going on?" I asked him.

"Just wait…" he said. I continued to watch the shower of sparkly stuff as it slowly ceased. 

Garet was the first to speak, "Isaac…What just happened to us?"

"Don't know…" I answered.

"There were barriers around us… I think they saved us."

"I agree. Those domes… I think it was our Psynergy." Ivan said.

"What? What are you talking about?" Garet asked. I heard him move. "I didn't use any Psynergy!….Hey! I can move! Guys, get up!"

I moved my arm and it responded. Yes! I climbed to my feet. The slight numbness quickly disappeared. 

Ivan got up, "Those barriers… I'm sure it was our Psynergy acting on it's own, to protect us."

"What?" Garet asked, dumbfounded .

"Let's just say that it acted like a internal defensive system. So when we are in danger, our Psynergy will protect us in a way." Ivan continued.

"Hey, that's pretty neat. If we can master using it anytime we want, I'm sure it'll help us defeat Saterus and Melody!" Garet exclaimed.

"It's Saturos and Menardi." I corrected him.

He rolled his eyes as usual. "Whatever."

"Lookout!" Gust warned us. The sky began to rain with that sparkly stuff again. The protective barriers formed around us once again, preventing the sparkly stuff from touching us.

A loud, booming voice erupted the sky, "Hroom! Why don't they turn into trees?"

Where was it coming from?

A softer, more feminine voice spoke, "Who are they? What people are these who are immune to Tret's glamour?"

I looked around the treetops. There wasn't anybody…

"Have they come to save that village with their strange powers?" the voice continued. "It will not be enough to save the people of Kolima."

Not enough? What does that mean?

The booming voice spoke again, "They earned their fate… Kolima took their axes to me, and now I shall take mine to them!"

The softer, gentler voice spoke, "You children may not know this…but we are dying."

Flint gasped quietly on my shoulder. "That cannot be…" he whispered.

"And Kolima Forest will wither and die when we are gone." she continued.

"We are not the only ones who will die, Laurel." the booming voice said, "Once we are gone, they, too, will go!"

"No…" Flint whispered, shaking his head.

"Tret was once a kindly forest king. But he is slowly dying, and his heart has been torn into two…" the one called Laurel, said sadly.

"His wrathful side turned the people of Kolima into trees. The kind Tret speaks no more." she continued.

Tret laughed a booming laugh that broke though the sky, "Hroom! The kindly heart invites destruction… I need no kindness!"

"If you wish to save those whom Tret have turned into trees, you must wake his gentle side." Laurel spoke, sadly, "But… if you cannot stop Tret from withering… we all will… Look for Tret deep within the forest."

"It's no use, Laurel! Humans cannot be trusted!" Tret warned. "I shall die… and the rest of the forest will die with me!" His voice echoed as the sparkly rain stopped.

I shook my head. This wasn't what I expected… The forest cannot die. No one should die. I won't let that happen.

"This wasn't what I expected to happen," I said. "We should hurry to the forest and save Tret!"

"I know we should… but what do we do?" Ivan asked, uncertain.

"We," I said, "are going to look for the kind side of Tret. Then we try to heal him… somehow…"

"Isaac," Flint said, "Tret is the oldest and wisest tree in the world. You mustn't let him die!"

I gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Flint. We're going to save him, and the people of Kolima. Right guys?"

Garet rubbed his chin, "Hey, if Isaac says so, then we are."

Ivan nodded and smiled as well, "I agree. Let's hurry!"

"Wait!" Forge called, "I sense another Djinn nearby…. Over there!" He hopped off Garet's shoulder and bounded towards a wooden fence. Inside the pen was another Venus Djinn that looked _exactly_ like Flint.

"Oy, Granite! That you?" Forge asked the little Venus Djinn. It looked over at us with sheer happiness. 

"Forge?!" It said. It's voice was much, much higher than the rest of the other Djinn. This must be a female.

"Heh, it is you! Hey Flint, found your sister," Forge said.

Flint jumped happily off my shoulder and landed inside the pen. "Granite, I'm so glad you're okay! I was so worried. What are you doing in this pen?" 

I saw specks of tears in both their eyes as they gently rubbed their heads together. "After the eruption, I found myself here. The humans that were here took care of me. But, look what happened to them! They're trees!" Granite then looked towards me, "Flint, is that boy…"

Flint nodded, "He is now my master. Granite, would you challenge Isaac?"

Granite cocked her head to the side and smiled. "I don't need to."

Forge interrupted, "Aww! Not you too! Come on! Don't tell me you're going to wimp out on this scrawny, little kid?!"

I glared at him. He stuck out his little, pink tongue at me. 

Granite sighed, "Oh Forge, you're always the same. You know I'm against such violence. If there's no need for a fight, then there's no need. Besides, if Flint already trusts the boy, so can I." With that said, she jumped out of the pen landed in front of me. "Isaac, is it? I, Granite, Venus Djinn of strength, will be honoured to join you in your quest. If you accept… that is…" 

I grinned, "I accept. I, too, feel honoured to have you by my side, Granite."

She cheered and hopped onto my shoulder. Flint hopped onto my other one. I probably looked ridiculous with them….

"Umm, you two, if you don't mind, could you guys hide in my bag?" I asked them.

They both cocked their heads to the side. "Why?" they both asked. 

"It's just that… um, never mind."

Granite chuckled, "Are you embarrassed to have us on your shoulders?"

"I guess…"

"Just think of us as parrots on a pirate. And you're the pirate."

Garet and Ivan laughed at me. I stuck out my tongue at them. "I'm not a pirate. Well, you two can stay there for now, but when we are in a town or something, hide in my bag, okay? So people won't think you're monsters are anything."

Granite shrieked, "I look like a monster?!"

"Ya sure do!" Forge said, laughing his little head off.

Granite started to flush with anger. "How dare you, Forge!" she puffed, "I'll.. I'll rip you apart!"

She began to glow yellow…

"Granite, calm down! Forge was just joking!" Flint cried out with worry.

The ground began to shake! Granite was using Psynergy! 

The trembling knocked all of us off balance so we fell on our butts.

"Flint's right! I was only joking! Now, please stop making that earthquake!" Forge cried.

The ground stopped trembling instantly. Granite glared fiercely at Forge, "You better be!" she yelled. Then she smiled at me like nothing happened…

"So Isaac, where are we going?" she asked sweetly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kolima Forest was practically like autumn. All the leaves were red, yellow, orange, and brown. Each gust of wind blew them off their branches, creating a beautiful sight. But, beautiful as it was, the trees didn't look too good; some were withering, some were already dead. There were large clearings where many trees once stood, now in their place were cleanly cut tree stumps. Some of the chopped down trees were still on the ground, dying away. It was a sad sight.

Every time I was alone in the woods, I could always hear these noises. What they were, I guessed it was the trees. It was like a humming noise. A sweet, gentle hum that I could hear in my head. Garet and Jenna couldn't hear it, so I figured it was because they didn't concentrate enough. They thought I was crazy because I could hear the trees sing. I didn't care. Their humming was soothing and relaxing.

But now, in Kolima Forest, I could only hear slight whispers and murmurs coming from the trees. Was it because they were dying?

__

'Isaac, do you hear that?' 

What the-?! Who said that?!

__

'Don't worry, it's only me, Flint.' I looked over at him. He winked. _'You may not know this, but you and I have a telepathic bond with each other.'_

I raised a brow at him. _'Give it a try, speak with your mind.' _ he continued.

You mean, like this? I just have to think of the words to say, right?

He smiled, _'Yes, that's right. I can read your thoughts, you can read mine. Granite can as well. Right, Granite?'_

'Yup!' came Granite's voice.

'We have this connection because you are a Venus Adept and we are Venus Djinn. We share the same Psynergy. Forge and Garet have the same together, as does Ivan and Gust. All creatures who share the same Psynergy have a telepathic bond with each other. Now listen, do you hear those whispers?'

I nodded.

__

'Those trees are sad and vengeful for what those people of Bilibin have done to their friends and especially what they have done to Tret. With their last breath, they are grieving their fate… Isaac, if you concentrate deeply, you can hear what they are saying.'

I took a deep breath and focused. Still, I could only hear whispering, nothing else.

"This place is like it's in the middle of autumn, but it's early summer!" Garet said, breaking my concentration. 

Ivan nodded, "It's really sad… All these trees are dying."

I took another deep breath and toned their voices out. 

__

'Isaac? Try channelling a little Psynergy to a tree.'

I concentrated on summoning a little Psynergy in my hand. A very faint, golden glow appeared. I directed the energy to a passing tree. 

Suddenly, I heard the words the tree was whispering…

__

'Humans…humans…. Why? Why did you do this to Tret? Our guardian… our life force… We die… we die because of you…'

The voice faded as we got farther away from it. _Did you…?_

Flint nodded, _'We both heard it. This is too horrible… Isaac, try talking to them now. Ask them if we can save Tret.'_

What?! Talk to them? How?

'Speak to them like you're speaking to me. But first, you need to channel more Psynergy this time.'

I concentrated a little harder. A faint glow appeared and I directed it towards another passing tree. I slowed down a little.

__

Can you hear me, tree?

A harsh whisper answered me. _'Human. Begone. Leave me be. I want to die in peace.'_

Wait! I… I want to ask if you could be so kind to tell me how I can save your guardian, Tret.

'Ha ha ha ha! A human wants to save our guardian?! Fool. What is done cannot be reversed. Your kind has lead us to our fate!' 

How can you say something like that?! Your king… your guardian is dying and you suggest no aid?

'Don't make me laugh, child. There is nothing, nothing you can do to save our king. A human cannot undo what a human has already started.'

Not all humans are the same. We all make mistakes. But we all can also fix them.

'You are the only human that has spoken to me and yet, you are only a child. Foolish boy, this mistake cannot be fixed, as you say. Your kind has brought those wretched axes to our kin. What do you expect us to feel for you? We all hold hatred and vengeance. Now, begone! Your kind is unwanted on these lands.'

No. I will not leave until you tell me what I can do to save your king. I'm trying to help you and all your friends! Don't tell me that there is nothing I can do, please!

'Stubborn child.'

Please! I promise you and your kind that I will save Tret. Please. Help me.

'…Boy, what is your name?'

Huh? It's Isaac…

'Isaac… If all humans were like you, we would never live with fear. If only…'

What are you saying?

'…The Tret you see will not be the Tret you seek. The kind side of Tret lies within. Awaken Tret's kind side…. That is all I can say.'

…Thank you. I promise I'll save him. I promise.

"Hey Isaac, why are you standing all the way back there?" Garet yelled.

I didn't realized I stopped. I scratched my head nervously. "Uh, nothing. Thought I heard something…" I lied. Well, partially lied. I did hear a tree talk after all.

I wasn't sure if I should tell him that I could talk to trees. I should practise it more first so I could get used to it. I'll tell him later. He'll probably think I'm crazy again.

"What did you hear?" he asked when I caught up to him.

I shrugged. "I think it was only a bee… Garet, behind you!"

Two huge bees, both the same size as a sparrow, were heading straight for him! He won't get out of the way in time! 

Without thinking about it, I shoved Garet out of the way. I tried to get down as quickly as possible but one of the bees struck my left arm with their enormous stingers. And it was the most painful thing I have ever felt…In an instant, my whole arm went numb. It was completely useless.

I drew out my sword with my one good arm. Garet got up and drew out his. Ivan was already prepared, he raised his stick, err, staff, ready to defend any attack. 

The two bees zoomed around us, looking for an opening to attack, possibly. They were fast, it was hard to keep both eyes on both of them. One of them went straight for Ivan and the second soon followed. 

Ivan saw this and waved his staff, err stick, I mean staff, in the air. "Whirlwind!" he cried. I felt powerful gusts of wind, that picked up the fallen leaves, blow towards the bees. They were caught in the cyclone of leaves and became disoriented that they fell to the ground. Right then, my body started to numb. My legs went out from under me that I fell on my hands and knees. 

"Isaac! What's wrong?" Garet said with concern. 

I couldn't move. My whole body was numb. I tried to speak, but my mouth wouldn't move. I felt nothing… I didn't even know if I was breathing…

"Isaac! Come on! Say something! What's wrong?!" Garet cried. 

The only sound I could make was a whimper. 

"Ivan! Something's wrong with Isaac!" Garet called out with fear.

Ivan quickly came to my side and touched my forehead. I could see a purple aura surround him. He was reading my mind. 

"It's the bee's venom. It's paralyzing him." Ivan said. I saw him take out a small, brown bottle. "An elixir should cure him." With that, he took the cap off, tilted my head up, and poured the foul -smelling, brown liquid into my mouth. 

In the name of Sol! The concoction tasted foul! It was disgusting! Far more worse than mom's all-purpose medicine formula.

I wanted to gag but my body was still numb. After a few seconds, I felt a tingling sensation in my arms and legs. Feeling was slowly coming back to my body. When all feeling was returned, I stuck out my tongue. "EWWW! What on _earth_ is that stuff?! YUCK! YUCK! YUCK!" I gagged.

Ivan laughed. "It's an elixir. It heals severe numbness, dizziness, and drowsiness. You should've brought some with you, they're quite handy."

"Ugh! The taste is still in my mouth!" I drank all the water in my water bottle, rinsing my mouth, trying to get rid of the awful taste. But that didn't work.

"Don't worry about it, Isaac. The taste will go away soon. How's your arm?" Ivan asked as he giggled.

My arm was swollen and sore. Nothing I can't heal. "Just swollen. I can heal it."

"Whew, I was worried there a minute ago. Don't scare me like that again!" Garet said.

I smirked, "You don't have to worry about me, you know. Whenever we're in battle, always worry about yourself first."

"Hey, you didn't." he said.

I shrugged, "I acted without thinking. So I couldn't help it."

"Well, don't act before you think. You could get yourself killed," he said with concern.

I nodded. "I'll try not to. By the way, what happened to those bees?"

"I finished them off…" Ivan said timidly.

"I see…" I said. "Why do you think they're that big? Normal bees are never _that_ big."

Garet shrugged. "Maybe it's because of Tret. That sparkly stuff of his might've affected them somehow."

"Maybe…" I said. I placed a hand over my wound, and closed my eyes. I concentrated on healing myself; summoning Psynergy from my body, into my body. It's strange how Psynergy works. I felt a warmness emanating from my hand. The pain disappeared and my arm was back to normal; no huge bee sting. 

"You can heal?" Ivan asked in awe. "Amazing! I've never seen a healing spell being performed."

"Yup, I can heal. But only small wounds. Not major ones. Someday I can, maybe." I said. I felt a little ashamed of myself. Garet already knows lots of different Psynergy spells, while I only know how to heal and move objects. The one thing I'm trying to master was to make an earthquake. But every time I try, I can't seem to summon enough energy.

Why is that? I'll have to ask Flint later on.

So we continued on, following the clearings in the forest. I knew where we were heading, we were heading towards the largest, most tallest tree in the forest, Tret. We all could see his trunk, but not the top because we were getting quite close. 

"Look, up ahead." Flint whispered. Before us stood the second tallest tree, must be Laurel. Her beautiful feminine face showed weariness. I approached her…

Her eyes fluttered open. "Who are you?" she asked weakly. Then her eyes widened, "Oh! You are the ones who resisted Tret's glamour?"

I nodded.

She smiled, "I sense a great warmth within you…" Her smile faded as she said, "If you came to rescue Tret, then you are already too late."

I looked over at Tret, he didn't look too good… 

"Soon, Tret will die, and we shall wither away without him." she continued. "Leave now, before this forest is destroyed." She then closed her eyes.

"I'm not giving up now." I said to her, but she didn't respond.

I walked over to Tret. His eyes were closed, he didn't look alive at all. "Tret?" I said softly.

No response from him, but the same booming voice from before spoke, "Hroom! He will not speak to you, child!"

It sounded like it came from within Tret…

"I control all of Tret's realm!" the voice faded away.

Ivan gently touched Tret and started to mind read him. "He's still alive, but… I sense something else inside of him. Could it be the wrathful side of Tret?" Ivan wondered.

"It must be…" I said. "The voice that spoke to us… it came from within Tret. The kind Tret must be inside!"

If the tree that I spoke to was right, then we must somehow find a way inside of Tret. But how?

"We might be able to climb inside on those vines," Ivan pointed to the dangling vines hanging from Tret's branches.

I looked up and saw a large hole in the trunk. I nodded, "Let's hurry!" 

I grabbed the vines and climbed. The vines weren't very green. They, too, were withering. Inside Tret was dark. It smelled of ancient wood. 

I felt a certain comfort being inside of here. I wonder if I could speak to Tret? 

__

'Isaac! Don't!' Flint warned. He must've read my thoughts. _'If you do, then the evil side of Tret will know you're here!' _ He warned.

__

Doesn't he know already? I mean, we are inside of him.

'I don't think he's aware of us. If he was, then he would have screamed or threatened us to get out.'

"Hey look, there's a hole in the centre," Ivan pointed out. 

Yeah, there was a hole, right in the centre of this level. There was something down there… I could feel an evil force seeping out of the hole…

"Should we jump in?" Ivan asked.

I nodded, "Yeah. The evil Tret must be down there. I can feel something evil from within…"

Garet rubbed his chin, "You're freaking me out. I don't feel anything."

I looked over at him and he cocked a brow at me. "You don't feel anything?"

He shook his head, "Uh, no… Am I suppose to?"

"Hmph. Ivan, do you sense anything?" I asked him.

Ivan shrugged. "Not really…" he said quietly.

__

'Odd,' Flint mind spoke,_ 'I feel it too. How can they not sense it?'_

__

How should I know? Should we go in?

__

'Yes, but be careful. You'll never know what might be down there.'

"Whatever," I said out loud. "Let's go down. Be on your guard everyone." 

I was first to jump. I fell a few meters down and landed hard on my feet on the floor below. A strong musty smell of old wood wafted over me. It was a little dark, I could still see clearly. Garet and Ivan landed beside me with a thud. The evil feeling was very strong here.

Up ahead of me was another face of Tret. Was this the gentle side of Tret? 

We approached him cautiously. "Hroom!" Tret cried out, scaring me half to death. "You! You hoped to find my kindly self?" he growled. "Fools! You should never have come here, now you shall never leave!"

"What do you mean?!" Garet yelled at him.

Tret gave him a cold stare, "Your powers protected you in the forest, but you are in the heart of my power!"

That made nervous.

"Here, you shall all become trees, and you will wither and die with the rest of us!" he roared. 

I felt a powerful surge of evil energy surround Tret as his face floated out of the wall. The energy formed icy blue flames around him. He was now a giant, floating head.

I felt so much evil energy…

We all drew out our weapons, prepared for battle. Tret smirked, "Pathetic humans, feel my wrath! Dark vines of hatred! Strangle them!" 

There was movement underneath my feet. Suddenly, black, thick vines shot out the ground and swung at us. One wrapped around my left leg, but I managed to hack it off as soon as another tangled my right arm, which was my sword arm. I grabbed my sword with my left and hacked at the vine. More vines came and wrapped around my whole body, preventing me from moving. They tightened and tightened until it got to a point were it got painful.

"Agh! I can't move!" I cried in panic. 

"Hold on!" I heard Garet cry out. "Ivan!"

I heard Ivan yelp in pain as I saw him trip and fall to the ground. The vines quickly wrapped around him, holding him down. 

"That's it!" I heard Garet say, "It's time for my all-time solution! Fire!"

I felt immense heat coming from Garet's direction as he powered up a 'Fire' spell. Flaming balls of fire burst from Garet's hand and disintegrated the vines upon impact. It cut the connection of the vines that held both Ivan and I down. I was free!

Tret roared in rage, "How dare you!"

"Isaac! Use me in battle!" Flint called out on my shoulder. 

I nodded, "Alright, lets go, Flint!"

I charged head on towards Tret. In the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of yellow, then I felt my sword flow with energy. My sword was now a golden blade!

"Hurry and attack him before my energy disappears!" Flint cried. I rushed through the whipping vines in my way. Tret noticed me advancing. "Fool! Thorns of vengeance! Tear them to shreds!" he summoned. Thicker, black vines, covered in thorns came up this time, blocking my way. I sliced through them with my golden blade, real easily. It was like cutting through butter. Tret saw this and tried to summon again, but I swung and struck him right before the golden glow of my sword vanished. Tret roared in pain as he was blown to the side. 

I grinned. Tret scowled at me. "Die!" he roared. He took a deep breath and exhaled sharply, blowing chunks of stone out of his mouth! There was no way I could avoid it!

"Quick! Use me!" Granite yelled in haste.

"Granite!" I called. She glowed the same yellow as Flint. Suddenly I felt a strong aura in front of me. The chunks of rock collided into an invisible barrier in front of me. I felt the impact of the rocks, but no pain. 

I smirked at my two Djinn. "You guys sure are handy." I said.

They nodded. "Now Isaac, our energy is still floating around. Gather it and summon!"

Tret roared in rage again. "How can this be?! Die! Die!"

More thick, black vines with thorns came out of the ground and whipped towards us. Garet let out another streak of flame, destroying most of the vines. But no matter how much damage he does, more kept on coming back. Ivan stayed behind Garet, providing backfire by unleashing Gust's power into battle. 

"I summon Jupiter!" Ivan yelled at the top of his lungs. He raised his arms into the air. Glowing, purple energy began to materialize above him, forming a giant Jupiter Djinn. The Djinn shot out powerful bursts of wind Psynergy towards Tret, that destroyed all the vines. Tret was knocked back, but he was still standing. The giant Djinn disappeared into a wisp of light. 

"Isaac, it's your turn to summon! Hurry, summon Venus! Gather mine and Granite's energy just like how Ivan did!" Flint yelled. 

I nodded and held my arms up. I could feel it… I could feel their energy hanging in the air. I concentrated, ignoring the noisy battle in front of me. Tret was glowing with so much anger, the ground began to tremble. I ignored it. I kept my concentration on the energy that flowed towards me. I felt it get stronger and stronger until I saw it materialize into golden energy. 

"I summon Venus!" I cried out. The energy formed into a giant Venus Djinn. 

__

'I will aid thee. Guide me to your target.' I heard it spoke!

There was no time to look amazed, so I said, telepathically, _There! Aim for Tret!_

__

Without wasting any time, the Djinn let loose some earth-shattering Psynergy that violently pounded into Tret, then disappeared in a wisp of light. 

"Arrrgh!" Tret screamed as he vanished into thin air.

The battle was over. I was worn out… it felt like I had just used Psynergy all day, but I hadn't even used any in battle! 

I looked over at Garet and Ivan. They too, were worn out. They both were breathing heavily, as was I.

"Oh…Mmmm…" I heard a soft whimper from where Tret's face was. His face was there again, but he looked a little different than the one before, more kinder, more gentle. "What… what has happened to me?" he asked us.

"You…" I began, but I didn't want to finish it. He looked so innocent…

"Was I… I see… My heart was all but lost in rage." he said softly. He took a shaky breath, "And you defeated the evil within me?"

I nodded. He smiled. "Thank you. I could not leave this world with so much evil in my heart."

Flint and Granite both let out a sob. "Don't say such things, Tret. You're not going anywhere!" Flint cried.

"Flint?" the wise, old tree asked. "It's been awhile. You and Granite both look well. Where are the others?"

Flint was near tears as he answered, "They… they… We got separated when Mt. Aleph erupted. Now we're searching for them with Isaac and his friends." 

Tret gave me a sad smile, "Thank you, great warriors. I can leave this world with no regrets."

"Please don't go, Tret!" Granite sobbed. Tears streaked down her little chubby cheeks.

Tret smiled at her, "I'm sorry, Granite. It's almost my time…"

"Wait!" Garet called out. "You can't just die like this! We need your help. You must turn all the people of Kolima that you've turned into trees back to normal."

"I turned the people of Kolima into trees?" Tret asked with shock. "Hroom! I must turn them back before they die with the forest!"

He closed his eyes. I felt a weak flicker of Psynergy pass by. "I can't do it…" Tret said, weakly. He looked exhausted. "My power no longer reaches Kolima…" He took a deep, shaky breath. "People of Kolima… forgive me…" His voice echoed as he faded away.

"Wait!" Garet cried. Then he stamped his foot in frustration. "Argh! What do we do now?" 

Everyone looked at me. I looked away. "Let's… Let's get out of here."

"But what about Tret?" Ivan asked. "We must heal him!"

"I know that!" I snapped. "But how? There's nothing I can do… I can't heal a tree."

"You're right…" Ivan said. 

We climbed up the leftover vines from the battle and left the inside of Tret. Tret's branches were drooping, and the leaves were nothing but brown. He looked so… dead. 

I promised that tree that I would save him and Tret. I promised. I never break a promise and I never will!

I sent out some Psynergy towards Tret as we descended from the hole.

__

Do you hear me, Tret?

__

'…Who is-- Isaac?' I heard him respond. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at me. 

Tret, please listen to me. You're not going to die. I promise you. Tell me, is there some way I can heal you?

He closed his eyes. _'I'm sorry, child. There is nothing you can do.'_

Agh! Why do you have to make this so difficult?! You can't just give up! All these trees… They're your friends. You can' t just let them all die!

'Child, please stop…. I don't want to bear any more pain… My heart is already torn too much… I ask all my kin to forgive me…'

__

I promised one of the trees… I promised him that I will save you. I'm not breaking that promise.

'Your heart is so kind, my boy. If only I knew you sooner…'

He closed his connection to me. I tried to plead with him, but he ignored me.

Garet and Ivan were already walking past Laurel, while I was slowly taking step after step away from Tret. I sighed. What _can_ I do to save Tret?

'Young one,' I heard a gentle voice in my head. _'Don't lose faith now.'_

I saw Laurel smile weakly, but her eyes remained closed. _'There might be a way to heal Tret. The healing waters of the Mercury Lighthouse would heal him, but the fountains have long since dried up…'_

The Mercury Lighthouse? Where is that?

'Near a small village named Imil, up to the northwest of here. Young one, if you solely do want to save Tret, you have my best wishes. Your heart is pure, and your determination is strong. I will always remember you…'

Please wait for me, then. I will come back with the water. I promise, just wait for me.

Her smile widened. I jogged up to Garet and Ivan.

"Come on! Let's hurry to Imil!" I said. I began to run.

"Imil? Why?" Garet asked as he ran behind me.

I grinned. "I know how to save Tret. And also," I said, flatly, "that's where the Mercury Lighthouse will be."

**************************************************************************************

Felix's POV

Ugh. I woke up with a massive headache and a stiff, and painful body. A small fire was built in front of me, emanating a source of heat and light among the darkness. Someone's back was against mine, propping me up in a sitting position. There was a weight on my shoulders, it was Jenna. She had fallen asleep beside me. But I could feel the burning of fever through my clothes. Jenna's sick… She was propped up against someone's back as well.

"You're awake." the person I was lying against, said. It was Alex. "Get some more sleep, you and Jenna both have a high fever."

A fever? I felt chills run through my body and I shuddered. "Where's Saturos and Menardi?" I asked, weakly.

"They're somewhere in the dome, speaking to each other so we can't eavesdrop on them." Alex answered, emotionless. "Go to sleep. Once my strength returns, I'll heal you."

I shifted into a more comfortable position. Alex's warm back, and Jenna's body heat were soothing. I looked down at the top of Jenna's violet hair. It was red in the light of the fire. 

The ground we were sitting on was charred earth. Saturos and Menardi must've done this… I could hear slight murmurs coming from somewhere in the darkness.

I rested my head on Jenna's. "Will we make it tomorrow?" I asked with sleep lulling me. 

Alex sighed. "Depends. If the blizzard doesn't stop by morning, we'll have to stay here a little longer. You and Jenna are also in no condition to continue."

I groaned. It was silent around us except for the howling wind around blowing around the dome. The dome was the size of a house and as tall as a tree. How thick the walls were, I didn't know, it was hard to see. More chills ran through my body and I shuddered uncontrollably. 

"Kraden, move in closer." I heard Alex say. The body Jenna was lying on shifted in closer that I could feel his body heat. 

Jenna woke up from the movement. She sat up slowly, confused. I pulled her back down beside. "You should stay close, you have a fever." I whispered to her. Her eyes lighted up when she saw me.

"Felix, are you okay?" she whispered softly. I nodded. "Good. I was really worried about you." She smiled weakly. I smiled back. 

"Jenna, you and Felix should rest." said Kraden. He sounded weary.

"I'm thirsty," Jenna moaned. 

Kraden chuckled softly. "Too bad there's not much snow left, those two feisty people melted it all away, almost melting the dome."

I felt Alex stiffen. "I had to reform the ice along the bottom. Such drastic actions had cost me my strength." Alex snarled bitterly. 

We were all silent after. Alex spoke up, "Here." I sensed him use a little bit of his Psynergy. He reached over his back and opened his hand. There was a small block of ice. I grabbed it and gave it to Jenna. She stuck the whole thing in her mouth.

"It's not poisoned, is it?" she said with a mouthful of ice.

Alex laughed quietly. "My darling, of course it's not. If it was, you'd be dead by now."

Jenna made stuck out her tongue and made a face at Alex's back. I snickered.

"Quit fooling around and get some sleep." he said, "And don't make faces at me."

Jenna froze, "I wasn't making any faces! I was just… shocked at how cold the ice is."

"Hmph." was Alex's respond. 

Jenna rested her head on my shoulder and I rested mine on her head. "Do you think we'll make it?" she whispered.

I fingered the necklace Remli had given me. I wanted to see her little smile again, and I know I will. 

"You worry too much, Jenna. Of course we'll make it. Of course…" I trailed off as I fell into a deep slumber.

A/N: Ah, I've finally finished. So give me some feedback on this chapter. Thanks again, Snoopy6458, for letting me use your song. You should be proud that Garet's managed to remember! He he he! Bye now!

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	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Ah… After a three month wait, I finally manage to get this finished! I'm so sorry for not updating lately, I was too busy with my other GS fic: Training to be a Ninja. Check it out if you hadn't! Anyway, enjoy this chapter! It'll probably be awhile before the next one…

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Chapter 12

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Isaac's POV

Winter was a season that always made me relax. The beauty of snow falling gently to the earth was a sight to see every winter. Also, it was fun to play in. Vale always held a festival for every season, and winter's my second favourite one with summer being the best. Speaking of summer, the Festival of Luna and Sol is a few weeks away. Hopefully, we'll be home by then.

"Can you believe how fast the seasons pass by?" said Garet. He was shivering slightly by the cold temperature of Bilibin Cave. There was a blizzard blowing across Imil Plains. Going through a blizzard in the middle of the night meant certain death. So we decided to wait in the cave till tomorrow for the storm to past. "I mean," Garet continued, "We just headed out on this quest in spring, went into a forest of fall, and now we're going to go into a winter wasteland!" 

Gust shook his head. "Imil Plains isn't a wasteland. It's quite a beautiful sight to see," he said.

Garet groaned. "I don't care. It's freezing as hell here." He then looked at me, "You sure we should go out there? What if we don't make it?"

I let out a short laugh and saw my own breath float in the cold air. "You're a Mars Adept. You're way better off in weather like this," I told him.

"No. I'm too sensitive to cold! Look at me, I'm shivering like crazy!" he cried. He draped his arms around himself and sat beside Ivan who was curled into a ball by the small fire we made, keeping his bare hands warm over the flames. 

I sighed. "We'll have to travel through there. It's very likely that Saturos and them already did. Damn it, we should've bought some winter clothes while we were in Bilibin…" I rubbed my tired eyes with the palm of my hands and sat beside Garet.

"We should get some rest," Ivan suggested with a yawn. "How long does it take to get to Imil from here?"

Gust pondered for a moment. "About a day and a half on foot," he answered. 

Garet groaned. "How long has it been since we left Vale?" he asked me.

I rugged my chin in thought. Let's see… it took us a day to get to Vault. Another day to get to Bilibin. Took almost the whole day to go to Kolima Forest and back to Bilibin. Half the evening to get to Bilibin Cave. "Almost three days," I said. "We should get some sleep, it should be morning soon."

They all nodded in agreement. "One of us should stay up and watch, just in case anymore of those skeletons might jump in on us," Ivan suggested. 

"I'll go first," Garet said. "That way, I can keep the fire blazing. Who's going second?"

"I'll go," I said. "Then if I remember, I'll wake you, Ivan."

He nodded, then he laid on his sack and closed his eyes. I used my bag as a pillow and laid on the cold hard ground. The coldness easily drew me into sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

__

I opened my eyes, and gasped.

Golden light surrounded me in it's warm embrace… I stood… deep inside the light.

"Where am I?" I said aloud.

No answer. 

Then a sound of beating wings from above startled me. "Who's there?" I called out.

No answer.

I began to panic. "Where am I?" 

I took a step forward, feeling an invisible ground underneath my feet. The sound of beating wings caught my attention again. I turned sharply to the source… but saw nothing. 

"Who's there?" I called out again, a little shaky.

Silence. 

"Don't be afraid." a godly voice spoke. It came from… all around me.

I froze. "Who's there?" I asked again.

"I cannot reveal myself nor say who I am… But once that time comes, you'll understand, for you must prove to me if you are worthy..." he said. 

I tried to see the speaker, but the golden light shrouded my sight. 

"Worthy? Worthy of what?" I asked.

"To be the holder of great power…" he answered in a whisper. "You have been chosen… Young warrior. When the time comes, I'll tell you more. But until then, farewell…"

"What? Hey, wait!" I called out. 

The echo of flapping wings was all I heard….

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Isaac, wake up," someone shook me out of my dream. I didn't want to move, I wanted to sleep. I waved him away.

"Go away, I'm sleeping," I groaned.

"Hey, if you're going to be lazy then…" He punched my arm, waking me up entirely. 

I got up and glared at Garet's exhausted face. "I'm up. I'm up," I yawned. I stretched out towards the cold, crisp air, and shivered.

Freezing in here…

Garet yawned. "Not much happened. Fire's still good. Toss in some firewood when it gets too cold…" he trailed off into a gentle slumber.

I rubbed my eyes, trying to keep them open. 

Ugh. I got to stay awake…

I grabbed my water bottle that I refilled in the river while going back to Bilibin. I poured some water onto my gloved hands and splashed my face with the icy water. Immediately, my mind jerked awake and I was well aware of my surroundings.

The red glow of the fire illuminated the cold blue cave with dancing shadows. It was fairly warm. Old twigs, and worn out sticks laid in a heap beside the fire. Firewood.

What should I do to keep me awake? 

I sat cross-legged, then I rested my head on my knuckles, deep in thought. I hope Jenna's okay. I hope Kraden's okay. I wonder how Felix is….

And, that dream… Was it a dream? It felt so real…

Something stirred from inside my bag. Flint's little head popped out. "You're turn to watch?" he yawned.

I nodded. He hopped out and jumped onto my shoulder. "I'll watch with you," he said.

I shook my head. "I can do this alone. Go back to sleep."

__

'You're going to fall asleep then.' he mind-spoke_._

I smiled. _I'll keep myself occupied._ I told him.

He cocked his head to the side, _'With what?'_

I shrugged lightly. "Tell me," I said aloud, "How do you know Tret? You seem to know him very well when we saw him."

"Tret…" Flint began, "He is like a father to us Venus Djinn. We would always visit Kolima Forest whenever we had time in the past. Kolima is our favourite place in the world. We and Tret share a strong connection with Mother Earth."

"Mother Earth?" I asked.

"Mother Earth…" he trailed off in thought. He closed his eyes and smiled. "She is our guardian. Our source of strength. Those linked to her are one with the earth."

"Linked to her?"

He nodded. "Yes. Those with the powers of earth are linked to her, even you. You just don't know it, but you are. You always have, Isaac."

I raised an eyebrow. 

"You may not feel it now, but someday, when you are ready, she will lend you strength. Just believe in yourself, Isaac. Believe in yourself and you'll always be strong."

I blinked. 

Flint smiled. "Haven't you ever wondered where your Psynergy comes from?"

I shrugged. "The Psynergy Stones?"

"Part of that is true. But Venus Adepts have a different source; Mother Earth. Your powers will grow strong if you understand her. Her feelings, her thoughts, her soul." He softly sighed. "Right now… She's sad. The world is falling apart and she cannot do anything."

"What do you mean 'falling apart'?"

He shook his head. "The world is in turmoil. We're not sure why… Even she doesn't know."

We were silent for a while after that. Finally he spoke again, "Someday, Isaac, you'll understand. When that time comes, you'll know what it means to be strong."

When that time comes… It seems like everyone is saying that to me now. The question is, how will I know when that time _has_ come?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When morning light, that was reflected off the smooth cave walls, came shining in, I gave up my little counting the icicles-on-the-ceiling game (which I never finished because I kept miscounting them). I suppose it was time to wake them up. But Forge was the first to awake. He perked up, fully energized, and jumped on everyone, trying to get them all to wake up. One bounce and the other Djinn awoke with a grumpy rage. Multiple stomps on Garet barely made him stir. I had to punch him awake like he did to me. Ivan awoke with ease from the noise the Djinn made.

Oops. I forgot to wake Ivan up for his night watch. It was tough to tell time in a cave, plus I forgot the sun rises later in this region.

Garet yawned and stretched his whole body despite the biting cold into his skin as he did so. "Ow… Sleeping on a stone floor isn't comfortable," he groaned.

"Yosh!" Forge cried eagerly, "It's time to go into the snowy plains."

Garet groaned again. "Why are you so happy to go in such a cold place?" he asked the Mars Djinn who now sat on his shoulder. 

Forge grinned. "It's a place of adventure. I've never been to the northern parts of the world so I don't know what it feels like to be in extreme cold temperatures."

Garet furrowed his brow. "Believe me, you wouldn't want to go in there," he said.

"Bah! I don't care. I crave for adventure so I'm ready to take the risks," Forge responded with pride.

So out we went into Imil Plains where we were struck with freezing temperatures and powerful gusts of icy wind. It _was_ _hell_.

We were not prepared for such weather. Luckily, there was an already-made trail by earlier people that was mostly covered in snow but still visible. I took the lead and walked in it, with knee-deep snow.

My toes had already lost all feeling when noon came around. The sun was peaking out of the gloomy grey clouds, but it didn't provide much warmth for us. The cold winds blew, making it difficult to keep moving. 

If only there was shelter…

Then, a terrible realization caught up to me…. How are we going to last the night? Gust said that it would take us over a day to get to Imil on foot.

Damn it…

Out in the distance, I could see an odd rounded hill. Strange it was, the whole field was suppose to be flat. With lots of trees. Lots and lots of pine trees. Wait a minute… What kind of plain is this? There's too many trees. We could take cover in them, but that odd hill in the distance has gotten my interest.

__

'So… cold!' Flint cried.

__

Grr… I already know that! I snapped.

I checked behind me and found Garet keeping a good pace, even though he complained about being sensitive to the cold. Ivan trekked slowly behind. Both were chilled to the bone.

There's nothing I can do for them but lead…

__

I'm heading for that hill.

__

'Hill? What hill?' Flint asked as he peeked out of my bag.

__

There's a hill over there in the middle of the field. I'm going to check it out.

'It's just a hill,' Granite joined in. She too, peeked out of my bag. _'There's no shelter on a hill! Why'd you wanna go there?'_

Because. Something tells me I should go there. Something about that hill isn't right… It's gleaming a blue-ish colour.

'Hmph. Probably just the snow reflecting the sky…' she grumbled. 

__

The sky's grey, I told her.

I didn't care what she said. I headed for the hill anyways. The already made trail that I followed was mostly covered in snow, a possibility that it was from the blizzard. It led to the hill as well, which made me suspicious.

Hungry, exhausted and terribly cold, I tripped and stumbled into an invisible pit… full of snow. 

Cold surrounded me from all sides, burying me deep in snow. I scrambled to my feet, gasping sharply from the wind. Snow clung all over my clothes and on my face. Garet and Ivan quickly ran up to me.

"Isaac! You alright?!" Garet asked first. He held out his hand and I grabbed it. I brushed most of the snow off of me.

"Y-You're all wet! We m-must find shelter or you'll f-freeze!" Ivan said through chattering teeth. 

"I'll lead now," said Garet as he stepped ahead. "I'm going to find a cave or something we would stay in over the night."

"G-Garet. Wait…" I said as I shook uncontrollably from the intense cold. "Head for t-that hill." I pointed.

He gave a weird look. "Why? A hill can't provide shelter," he said.

"J-Just do, okay? I don't think it is a hill, that's why I… want to go ch-check it out. K-kay?" I stammered.

He nodded. "Fine. But… Are you going to make it?" he asked with concern showing deeply on his face.

I nodded. "S-Sure. I'll make it!" I said aloud, showing him I could go on.

But deep down, I didn't know if I could go on… Each step I took seemed to be my last as I forced my stiff legs to keep moving. 

Garet saw my struggle so he stopped, waiting for me to catch up. "You know, I could make an easier path for you two with my Psynergy," he said.

"Garet, don't. Y-You need to save your energy. Y-You m-might not make it if you…" I trailed off as I was too cold to continue. Talking was too difficult as my jaw began to freeze stiff. My head was starting to feel lighter than before, and that was not a good sign…

"You guys can't handle it anymore… I'm going to use it. Stay behind me," he said. He took a few steps ahead, clasped both hands together and brought them in front of his chest. He closed his eyes in concentration and stood still. 

"G-Garet… Don't!" I muttered weakly.

He continued on as if he didn't hear me. In a flash, flames surrounded his hands. His eyes snapped open and he brought both hands to his side, and launched a fireball, the size of an ordinary ball, straight ahead with great force. The intense heat of the fireball melted most of the snow in it's path before smouldering out meters ahead, singeing some trees. 

Stupid Garet! He used too much of his Psynergy to create a fireball that big and to make go that far. I gritted my aching teeth.

"Baka-lo!" Forge screamed. "Why'd you do that?! You used too much Psynergy!" He stuck his little head out and continued to yell. Garet got irritated so he stuffed Forge back inside with his hand.

"Come on! Let's hurry!" Garet said as he jogged down the new, easier path.

When I took a step on the yellowed grass, I almost stumbled. It was awkward walking on a flat surface again. Ivan stumbled as well. He used his staff as a walking stick.

Almost there… The hill was getting closer and closer as we moved along at a decent pace. The trail ended, and so, we were back at walking through a few feet of snow. 

Finally, after almost falling into another pit but I didn't because Ivan prevented it from happening, we made it to the hill. Which was not a hill but a glass dome… made of ice. Our reflections were clearly seen on the smooth, shiny surface. 

Amazing… but how'd it get here?

"What is this?" Garet asked as he touched the slick surface. 

I shrugged, unable to answer. I slowly walked around the dome, trying my best not to fall over and die. Then I spotted an opening. The dome really was made out of ice, someone melted a hole in it to get in… or to get out.

Around the opening, the ice was frozen in a melting form. An ice puddle was formed on the ground. I decided to go in and check…

Inside was fairly warm; much, much warmer than outside. It was magnificent, being _inside_ an ice dome. Images of outside, were a deep colour of ice blue. And everything was disfigured and blurred but I could still make out the trees and Garet and Ivan. The ground, I've noticed, was black. Burnt. It smelled like pine and wood mixed in with burnt logs. Inside, I saw trees. The dome reached the same height as them; as far as I could see. 

Garet and Ivan entered as well when they spotted the opening. "Wow…" Garet gasped. "This hill's a dome of ice!" 

"It's warm," Ivan added. He breathed into his cold hands and entered deeper inside, examining the place. "Look, someone made a fire." He pointed to a pile of firewood that was stripped from a nearby pine. 

"S-Someone was h-here," I stuttered, shaking from the cold despite the warmer temperature in here. 

"Must've been _them_," Garet said. He ran to the pile and lit it up with a small spell. "I guess we'll be staying here over the night," he grunted, throwing kindling and sticks into the growing flame. "Isaac, hurry and change out of your clothes," he said to me.

I nodded and went behind a tree. I stripped my stiff, frozen boots off, numbly moving my toes, trying to get some feeling back in them. Then I stripped off my wet clothes and changed into my extra clothing. It was always a good idea to bring extra clothes.

Still, I was freezing. I draped a blanket I brought around myself and stuffed my feet back into my cold boots. Then I headed towards the warm fire.

I dropped beside it, thankful for it to be there. But chills ran down my spine when a cold breeze swept past me. I gritted my teeth from the biting cold. 

I want to sleep…

I rested my head on my knees, wrapping my blanket tighter around me. 

So warm…

But then another breeze blew in and I started shivering. 

Garet threw more firewood in. "How are we going to block the entrance?" he asked. He gave me a wary glance.

I numbly shrugged, but my Djinn jumped out of my bag with an idea. "I know!" Flint said. "Granite and I will make a wall of vines."

"Vines?" Garet asked, raising a brow. He dropped to the floor and yawned.

"Tah… Just leave it to us," Granite squealed, walking with Flint towards the entrance.

__

'Isaac, I'm sorry, but we'll be needing some of your Psynergy,' Flint told me telepathically. _'Close your eyes and rest. We'll take care of everything.'_

I tried to turn my head to watch them, but I suddenly felt a huge drain on my strength. In an instant… I fell asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Felix's POV

"Wake up, it's time to go," someone shook me awake. I opened my eyes and saw Jenna looking down on me. She looked a little pale, but better. She leaned on her stick (which she calls a 'staff', but to me it's a stick.)

I got up with Alex's help. He looked tired and weary from last night, creating the massive ice dome we stayed over night. "My strength isn't fully back, but I can heal your fever a little bit," he said. He placed a hand over my face and summoned some Psynergy. I felt warm, feeling some of my strength returning. 

Then he placed a hand over Jenna and did the same thing. Jenna blinked, grinning a little. "Thanks, Alex," she said. "I feel better."

Menardi, Saturos and Kraden were waiting at the side. When we got there, Saturos let out a grunt. "You've been sleeping for half a day. It's now midday, we'll be at Imil by nightfall. This time," he warned us, "Don't lag behind."

He then turned around, placing a hand on the icy surface. Upon his touch, the ice quickly melted with a soft hissing sound as steam wafted around his hand. In an instant, a large hole was formed through the thick layer of ice.

Suddenly, I felt the icy wind bite into my skin once again. I shivered. I still had a slight fever… But I could go on.

Hopefully…

Saturos took the lead, followed my Menardi, Kraden and Jenna, then Alex and me. 

Winter was a season I hated. It was cold, wet, and more cold. Jenna liked it for some reason even though she was a Mars Adept. Mars Adepts are suppose to hate snow. But not Jenna.

I wonder if she likes it still?

Anyway, every winter in Vale, I stayed indoors at most times. I would have to be bundled up in layers of clothing to ever step outside. I resented the cold. But now look at me… I'm in it with a thin layer of protection!

I gritted my teeth as a burst of wind blew past me. 

Back then, Jenna always urged me to join in on the snowball fights she always had with Garet and Isaac. I refused many times, but they always pulled me out with them. 

Sigh… I had so much fun.

A small smile spread across my face as I trekked behind my sister. She was a _tough_ snowball player. Strong too. 

I'm proud of you, Jenna. You have become a strong independent person. 

As nightfall fell upon us, so did the temperature. The once unbearable cold became unbearably colder. We were all exhausted once more, and my fever seemed to have reversed direction from better to worse. 

Ugh…

I tried my best to keep walking forward, but part of me just wanted to fall over and sleep… Which I did when I tripped over my foot and laid in my frozen grave.

"Get up!" someone cried, yanking me to my feet. Alex draped one of my arms around his shoulders and one of his around my back. "We're… almost there," he huffed, weary and out of breath. He tried to hide his exhaustion, but I knew he was worn out. 

I stumbled over my feet, trying to walk straight, but I felt dizzy… my head was pounding… 

Up ahead, I saw light… Light from a house!

Seeing the light gave me some strength to keep going. I was only determined to get into a nice, warm building with a nice, warm bed. And maybe some nice, hot soup to eat too…

I licked my dry, cold lips, feeling thirsty as well.

Menardi and Saturos were the first to enter the small inn of Imil. Jenna, Kraden, Alex and I all filed inside, bursting with joy and relief. It was so warm inside!

A man, possibly the innkeeper, was startled by our entry. "Good gracious! Are you travellers alright? You walked a long ways through the snowy plains to get here! Come in! Come in! Get warm by the fire!" he kindly gestured towards the large fireplace by the tables. 

"We would like some rooms," Saturos told him. He didn't look fazed by the intense cold, nor did he look weary at all. Neither did Menardi.

The man nodded at them and smiled. "Why, of course! But since we're an isolated village… We only have one room and that's the whole top floor! Please, feel free to stay as long as you like. You all look exhausted from your travels…" 

"How much?" Saturos abruptly asked. His face showed no change in emotion. 

The man nervously scratched his head. "Well, uh…" he muttered, "Twenty -four coins."

Saturos dropped some money onto the table and left. He climbed up the stairs with Menardi following behind, both not saying a word.

Meanwhile, the rest of us sat by the table that was nearest to the fireplace, happily warming up our hands and feet and everything else.

Alex whispered into my ear. "I'd like to keep a low profile while I'm here," he told me. He then glanced over at the innkeeper who was counting the gold coins. "That buffoon, Harold. He's a greedy one."

I slightly nodded. "So this is your hometown, huh?" I said quietly. 

He closed his eyes and nodded. "It sort of is. Mia and I came here long ago."

"Mia? Who's that?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Someone… I know…" he whispered. He then took another glance at the innkeeper who had his back towards us. Alex got up and climbed the stairs without another word. Which left the three of us to quietly stare at the glowing fire.

"We actually made it," Jenna grinned. 

I grinned back. "Yeah. And you thought we couldn't," I said, shaking my head at her. "You big baby."

She glowered at me and stuck out her tongue. "I _am_ not!" she hissed. She leaned forward, glaring at me.

I leaned forward too, returning the glare. "_Are _too!" I said.

She bared her teeth and leaned closer, so did I, until we touched heads while glaring at each other. "Felix, you're burning up!" she cried, touching my forehead with her cold hand. "You're still sick. You should get some rest!"

I waved my hand. "Nah, I don't feel that bad," I lied. But truly, my headache was getting much worse and my vision was a little blurred. 

"Here, drink some water," Kraden offered me a cup with some cool water in it. I drank it all down and thanked him.

"We all should get some rest," he told us, giving me a hand up. I staggered forward, walking from side to side, looking for a wall for support. Jenna came up beside me. "You idiot! Don't lie to me!" she cried, helping me walk up the stairs. 

Candles were lit on the one table in the room where Saturos and Menardi sat. Alongside the far wall were four beds. Alex was sitting on one, arms crossed and staring blankly out the dark window. Jenna plunked me on one of the beds in the middle.

She sighed. "Haa… I hope tomorrow's a better day than today. I'm going to get something to eat. You," she dabbed a finger to my chest, "Go to sleep!" she told me. Then she went back downstairs.

I groaned, rubbing my aching forehead. Chills ran through my body as I laid in bed. I took my wet boots off and snuggled deeply into the cold bed. I shivered, but I was glad to be sleeping in a nice bed. 

I heard voices talking to each other… but they were mumbling in low, lulling voices… I didn't bother trying to make out the words…

All I want is sleep…

A/N: Sorry folks. No Mia yet! But she'll definitely be in the next chapter! Thank you for reviewing!


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Hey everyone! I finished sooner than I thought! Great news, Mia fans! You can quit throwing things at me! Mia's finally making her appearance in this chapter. (Finally, ne?) Enjoy!

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Chapter 13

Imil village was in my sight as we passed through a thicket of pine trees and shrubs. Grinning, I sped up my pace, following the footsteps of previous wanderers. Obviously Saturos's and them.

"We made it!" I told my friends who were right behind me. A smile spread across both their faces as they saw Imil with their very own eyes. In the distance, there was a dim outline of a tall tower.

"Alright! I don't think I can last any longer in this weather…" said Garet as he rushed towards Imil. "Man, I'm so hungry!"

I smirked at him, following right behind. Ivan let out a short laugh. "Garet, there's no need to rush! You ate most of our rationings last night," he giggled. 

"I'm hungry and I'm freezing!" he sang happily. 

I was hungry and cold too. 

The weather today wasn't as bad as yesterday's. There wasn't any wind and the sun was partially up, which was good. I didn't want the snow to reflect the sun into our eyes.

Once at the entrance gates, a man, wearing thick winter clothing with a shovel, spotted and hurried to us. "Good gracious! What are you boys doing travelling in the middle of the cold season?!" he cried. "Hurry inside and warm up!" He gestured towards the first house to our left. We shuffled inside with him right behind us.

I tried to protest but it was no use.

An old lady let out a cry of surprise as we came in. "Marlene, Joseph, these young travellers need to warm up! They've been wandering the snowy plains in such little protection!" the man explained to the old lady.

"Oh dear," she cried, "Please, come in! I'll make some hot tea to warm you boys up!" She hurried to the black iron stove with a warm fire already burning inside and took out a kettle.

An elderly man, who laid in a bed, tiredly turned his head to look at us. He gave us a weary smile and coughed a welcome, "Hello, boys. Please, make yourselves at home! (Cough)!"

"Um… It's alright, you don't have to go through any trouble for us!" Garet said nervously as the old lady grabbed some mugs out of her cupboards. "We were heading for the inn, so we don't need anything, thank you!"

Ivan and I nodded in agreement. "Nonsense," the old lady replied, taking some small, thin clothed bags and placing them into the mugs. Then she scooped water from a bucket into the kettle and set it on the stove. "You children are frozen to the bone! What were you thinking when you passed through the snow? Coming unprepared in those thin layers of clothing. My, my!" She shook her head.

The man who shuffled us in the house nodded to the lady and the old man then to us. "I'm off to shovelling again. Please be careful, boys," he told us as he closed the door behind him.

"We will, thank you," Ivan said politely. He then nervously turned back to the kind old lady. 

"It's nice to have visitors once in a while," said the lady. She placed some spoons into each mug and waited for the water to boil. "But you boys have arrived in a bad time. There's an epidemic spreading around the village and almost everyone has fallen ill, just like my poor Joseph!" She approached the old man who coughed and smiled at her. 

"Don't worry about me too much, dear," he said in a dry, raspy voice. "Take care of the (cough)! (Cough)! (Cough)!…boys first! (Cough)!"

I don't want to catch the cold he has… Each cough sounded horrible and fatal as the poor old man drew in a sharp breath each time.

"Joseph!" the lady cried out in alarm, worry spreading over her features. "It's getting worse… We need Mia here quickly!"

Joseph stopped coughing for a moment, "No, no, Marlene. She's too busy with the other (cough) villagers. Let her come see me when she has time! (Cough, cough, cough)!"

"Nonsense, Joseph! You need her help or it could get worse!" she cried, stroking the his hair and pecking a kiss on his forehead. "I'm going to bring her here to see you, okay?"

"Wait," Garet interrupted them. "We can go look for the person you're looking for, since you're already helping us…" 

"I agree, ma'am," I said, nodding my head. "Let us handle this."

Marlene gave us a warm smile. "Oh, alright. I guess it's better for young lads like you to be wandering out in the cold than an old bag of bones like me," she said.

I gave her a smile and nodded. "Don't worry, we'll get uh… Mia, right?" I asked.

She nodded. "She should be in the healing sanctum that is across the frozen river. Follow the path north, and you'll see a bridge to cross the river. Then go south and you'll see the sanctum," she explained. "Please, hurry. Your tea will get cold!"

I grinned. "We will. Thank you, ma'am." I told her. Then to my friends, "Ready to go?"

They both nodded, with Garet looking grumpy as ever. "I hate the cold…" he muttered.

I rolled my eyes at him and opened the door where we felt a sudden rush of cold air in our faces. I shivered once more.

To my right I saw the river, frozen solid. It looked like you could walk on it, but that would be a dumb idea. We went north, following a freshly shovelled path, past the inn which was right beside the old lady's house.

Jeez… we could've just went in there…

The man from before was shovelling the light snow off the path by some shops that were made into the side of the cliffs. When he saw us approach, he raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing back outside so soon?!" he cried, as he started to shuffle us back towards the house.

"Hey!" I said, "We're heading towards the healing sanctum. That old man, Joseph is getting worse with that cold he has, so we need to find a person named Mia." When I finished, he stopped and rubbed his covered head. 

"Is that so? Then you should hurry. Across the bridge and go south, it's in the side of the small hill you will see," he pointed over the small ledge with a tree and over the river. 

"Thanks," we all said and continued following the path which was now covered in snow because the man didn't shovel it yet.

Once on the bridge, Forge let out a cry as he hopped onto Garet's shoulder. "Djinn alert!" he cried.

Garet grabbed him so no one noticed him. "Hey, what are you doing?! Don't pop out when we're in a village!" he hissed at the Mars Djinn who only glared.

"Baka!" Forge squealed. "I sense a Djinn nearby. Over there to be exact!" he looked over to the frozen waterfall.

The waterfall was a beautiful sight to see. It was all frozen from top to bottom, forming a wondrous ice sheet that covered the side of the cliff. There was a small opening at the base of the waterfall, revealing a hole that possibly lead to a cave…

I looked down at the frozen river, trying to see how thick the ice was. It did look quite thick… maybe able to support our weight. 

"Bah, I'm not going down there," Garet told his Djinn who glowered back at him. "You go get him yourself."

"If this is how you treat us, then you don't deserve to have my power, baka!" Forge screamed back at him. "Get your bu-"

Garet shook the Djinn in his hands, making Forge even more furious as the little creature began to growl. Garet then gave him a wary stare. "Quit screaming already. If you put it that way, then I guess we'll have to go down there… Right, Isaac?" he said, giving me an irritated look.

I shrugged. "I guess so… Let's go down and climb over the fence," I groaned. 

"Uh, guys," Ivan spoke up as we began to descend over the short, snow covered, wooden fence and onto the ice, carefully tested the ice's strength with my foot. "Shouldn't we get help first?" he asked Garet and I who were already walking, or more like slipping, easily across the slick surface of ice that was really solid to hold both of us.

"Oh yeah," I said, remembering why I was out here in the first place and not in the inn. "You go ahead, Ivan. Garet and I will get the Djinn and we'll meet you back at that house we were at."

He nodded and continued south, while Garet and I started to slip-slide on the ice towards the small opening which we could squeeze through. 

Behind the frozen wall was a small beautifully illuminated cave covered in ice. Light reflected off the smooth surfaces of the ice making a cool-lighted blue cave. It was also warm inside, just like inside the dome.

Forge, Granite, and Flint emerged from their hiding spots and looked around. "Hello?" Forge yelled, making his voice echo around us. "Keh! Show yourself, baka!"

"DON'T CALL ME BAKA!!!" 

A little flaming ball came flying at Garet and knocked Forge off of his perch on Garet's shoulder. The little flaming ball turned out to be another Mars Djinn that looked _exactly_ like Forge, just like how Flint and Granite look the same.

The Mars Djinn pounded Forge as it jumped continuously onto the other arrogant Djinn. "How many times did I tell you to stop calling me that?!" it screeched in a higher pitch tone than Forge. Must be a girl…

Forge, who was being stomped on, yelped out in pain. "Ow! Ouch! Agh! Quit it! Fever! Stop! Gomenaisai! Gomennaisai!"

Fever, the new Mars Djinn stopped jumping, but remained standing on top of Forge who didn't look so good. "You _do_ know that I don't always understand your foreign tongue!" she screeched angrily.

"I said I was sorry!" Forge shrieked at back at her.

"Sorry?! Hmph!" Then she noticed all of us watching her and blinked. "Oh… Uh… Hello there! Flint! Granite! You're okay!" she cried happily jumping towards me. Both Venus Djinn hopped down to greet their friend. 

"You did a good job of pounding your brother into a pulp," Flint said gleefully. A little grin spread across his little face. 

Forge got up, outraged and hissing mad. "You didn't have to do that, Fever-chan!" 

Fever glared at him and stuck out her tongue. "You deserve it for calling me baka, baka!" she spat. Then she raised her brow and looked at Garet and I. "What are you doing with these humans?" she asked her friends.

Garet rolled his eyes. "Well, it's so obvious. They're joining us in our quest to save the world from total destruction," he said, irritated from the cold.

I rolled my eyes. "Something like that," I told her. Fever cocked her head to the side and grinned. 

"Great! I'll join too. You," she addressed Garet, "A Mars Adept, huh? That's ever better! I am Fever, Mars Djinn of Spirit, and I will be honoured to-"

"Nani?! No challenge?!" Forge interrupted her. Fever bared her teeth and charged at him, head butting the other Mars Djinn and knocking him to the cold ground. "Ow…" he winced.

"As I was saying," Fever continued, "I will be honoured to join you on your quest, sword wielder, Garet."

Garet looked more thrilled than irritated now as he grinned and nodded. "Fever, I'll be honoured as well! Hop into my bag so no one can see you outside," he said as he picked up Forge's battered body. "Wow, Forge, your sister's really aggressive. Reminds me of Kaylina. We always argued over things!"

I let out a short laugh. "It was because you kept killing her flowers," I reminded him as he started to laugh too.

"Oh yeah…" he said.

Once back outside, Ivan was waiting for us by the fence by himself. "You guys! She wasn't there! But the children working inside said she was heading towards the old couple's home. Should we go check?" he asked as we climbed over the fence.

I shrugged, Garet nodded. "Of course we go!" said Garet as he lead the way. "I'm not going to miss out on our tea!"

"As well," Ivan added. "We should check to see if they're okay too."

So we went back towards the old couple's home finding that indeed, there was the person we were looking for, gently holding Joseph's frail hand in hers. She closed her aqua blue eyes and began to glow a light blue aura. The light surrounded her body and the old man, that's when I realized what she was doing; she was using a form of healing Psynergy; Psynergy, I have never seen before.

Garet elbowed my arm. "She's using Psynergy!" he whispered in my ear. 

I nodded. "She's an Adept…" I whispered back.

When the light subsided, she gave Joseph a gentle smile. "How are you feeling, Joseph?" she said sweetly in a gentle and almost… heavenly-like voice.

It surprised me when the old man rushed out of bed, fully refreshed and healthy. He did a little hop and laughed heartily. "Mia, my dear! I feel good as new! (Cough)!"

The girl let out a laugh as she tried to settle the old man down. "Please, sir! You're not fully healed yet. Lie down and get some rest," she told him. 

"Mia, thank you for your help! I don't know how the village would last without you," Marlene assured her.

Mia smiled and nodded, "Don't mention it! You should get some rest too, Marlene!"

Joseph settled back into bed, noticing us three standing in the room. "Boys! I'm sorry for the trouble… Mia had arrived on her own and now I'm better!" he said kindly. 

Mia, the girl with the amazingly beautiful aqua-blue eyes and long light blue hair and a kind, gentle and beautiful face… (I said beautiful twice…) looked over at us and blinked. She wore thick, warm winter robes that were light blue and white. She had a silver hair clip that tied her hair up in a ponytail. In her hand, she carried a silver staff with an angelic symbol on top.

She _was_ gorgeous. I had to stop myself from gawking at her. I just gave her a smile as she looked at me. 

"Who are you?" she kindly asked, carefully keeping her eyes on mine.

"Travellers," I burst out, trying to stay calm. I was getting nervous… I always did when around girls I don't know…

"I know you're travellers," she said awkwardly. 

"Oh…" I stuttered, "Well, I'm Is-" 

I was suddenly cut off when a flash of blue light shone through the window, catching all of our attention. Mia was the only one who knew what happened… "That light!" she cried in shock, "The lighthouse… It can't be! Alex and I are the only ones… No… Alex!" 

She ran past us and out the door in a hurry, looking really worried. "Did she say 'lighthouse'?" Garet pondered. 

"The Mercury Lighthouse!" I cried out, realizing that the tower that I saw was a lighthouse. "Come on! She also said Alex's name, that means-"

"Trouble…" Garet hissed. "Jenna and Kraden must be there!"

"Let's go!" I ran out the door but was suddenly stopped by Marlene's cry of protest.

"Wait! Don't forget your tea!" she called out.

Garet perked happily up. "Tea!" he cried, dragging us back inside.

We drank as fast as we could, but it was impossible because it was too hot! I ended up burning my tongue…

We thanked the couple and rushed back outside into the cold and followed the distant figure of Mia. 

At the entrance of the lighthouse, it felt a little warmer around the tall structure as we crossed the unfrozen, chasm of crystal clear water. Actually, the whole base of the lighthouse was surrounded in water…

"Wow…" I said in awe. The lighthouse was incredibly tall, reaching at least twenty, or thirty houses high. It was made out of beautiful aqua-blue stone… the same aqua-blue as Mia's eyes… that were looking right at me right now… 

She furrowed her brow. "Someone is here…" she whispered, kind of in a trance. Her eyes lazily averted away from mine and she looked up towards the top. "Don't you hear it, too?" 

I raised my brow at her, shaking my head. 

She looked disappointed. "You don't? Well, I can…" she said softly. "Alex and I are the only ones who can enter this lighthouse. The Mercury Lighthouse." 

She then headed for the entrance, which was blocked by an old statue of a warrior in armour. "This statue… It's blocking my way." she said.

When I came up beside her, I noticed that the ground was heavily damaged between us and the statue. So there was no way to go up and push it aside, unless…

"I'll handle it," I told her as I stood facing the statue. I concentrated on summoning my Psynergy, making it wrap around the statue. Then controlling my energy with my hand, I moved it aside, revealing behind it a glowing blue force field. 

Mia looked a little surprised at me. "You did that?" she asked me. 

"Yup," I told her. She gave me a thoughtful smile.

"I saw a ghostly force pushing it. You have some kind of power?" she asked.

Garet scratched his head. "You could see our Psynergy?" he asked.

"Psynergy? Is that what you call that power?" she wondered.

We all nodded. "You were using Psynergy when you healed that old man," Ivan told her. "I wonder… what kind of Psynergy is it? We have never seen it before. Your healing powers are different from Isaac's." He pointed at me.

"My Psynergy? It's a special power, handed down to members of the Mercury Clan," she explained, "from generation to generation."

Mercury Clan? She's a Mercury Adept, duh!

She gave us a little smile. "That power is called Ply, generated through meditation," she told us, but then she looked sadly at her hands. "It used to be stronger…"

"Mercury Clan, huh?" Garet thought out loud, rubbing his chin. "You know it sounds like the people of Vale," he said to me. "They are the sworn protectors of a special power, just like us!"

I nodded, looking back at Mia who looked disturbed. "I have to go… I must find whoever entered the lighthouse," she said softly. She then jumped over the gap and placed a hand on the blue, glowing doorway. She closed her eyes and a light blue aura surrounded her once more as she used the power, Ply, on the force field. In an instant, the door stopped glowing and she went inside…

I smirked at Garet and Ivan. "This is it, guys. Let's show Saturos and Menardi what we're made of," I assured them. 

Garet grinned. "You sure their names aren't Saterus and Melody?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes at him. "I have no idea anymore. You got me confused with their names," I told him. 

Ivan laughed. "I'm sure it's Saturos and Menardi. You kept correcting Garet on it, Isaac."

I shrugged. "Heh. Why not ask them, Garet? I'm sure they'll say their names for you to remember correctly," I grinned.

I jumped over the crevice and went inside the warm lighthouse. I spotted Mia up ahead, and a giant green lizard. 

Mia swerved left and right, trying to get past it, but the lizard followed her every move. It hissed and flicked it's black tongue out at her. In it's hand it carried a little hatchet, ready to take Mia down. It swung, but Mia jumped back and it missed. "What's a monster doing in the lighthouse?" she cried.

I drew my sword and charged at it. Garet and Ivan were right behind me. Three against one seemed fair when fighting a overgrown lizard, right? I swung and managed to cut it's weapon arm as it tried to dodge my attack. 

A flash of purple lightning struck it's entire body, making it drop it's weapon. The lizard hissed madly at us and clawed at me, but I blocked it with my sword. Garet rushed into it, driving his sword into the lizard's chest…

It fell over and disappeared in a puff of black smoke… 

What the? The monster wasn't real?

Mia ran up ahead. "Thank you!" she cried as she went into the next room.

I followed but lost sight of her as I rushed into the new room. It was amazing… A large pool of water was in the centre and a large statue of goddess lay before us in the centre of the far wall that had two entrances. The goddess had her hands laid out in front of her, with the palms open. On her chest was a glowing purple jewel that emanated some sort of energy that I could feel in the air.

There was a stone pedestal with an inscription written on it; "He who honours the heart of the goddess shall stand at the centre of all, like a swan in the centre of a rippling pond."

I read out the inscription, thinking what it means. Well, in the centre of the pool, there was a single stone tile with an 'X' like symbol on it … 

Maybe we have to stand there… We'll do that later.

"So much water…" Garet muttered. "I hate water."

"Live with it," I told him as we headed to the left entrance. More pools of water laid in the next room, and the next. Definitely lots of water in here. We were surrounded in flowing water and there was an entrance just a stone tile away. This tile, had the same 'X' pattern as the one before. I jumped on it and jumped across, in front of the stairway, as did Ivan. Garet hesitated.

"I hate water…" he repeated and took a careful hop and another, smirking as he accomplished jumping over his fear of water.

We climbed up the steps and saw Mia in the next room, glowering at a statue in front of her. "The path is blocked again," she told us. 

I grinned. "Leave it to me," I said and approached the light blue statue of a goddess. I performed another 'Move' spell and pulled the statue into the huge hole before me, making it a stepping stone for us to walk on.

Mia smiled happily at me. "Thank you for helping again," she said. "But, why are you here? Do you have some business with the lighthouse, too?"

"Yeah," I told her, "We have some serious things to deal with that involves saving the world."

She raised her brow at me as I grinned sheepishly. "Save the world?" she asked.

Garet nodded. "It's a long story!" he grinned along with me. 

"Is that so…" Mia rolled her eyes and laughed. "Well, whatever. I do need your help to pass through any other blocked passageways. The Mercury Clan are the only ones permitted to enter this place." She looked suspiciously at us but then smiled. "But, I sense something special about you. I feel that I can trust you! Please, let me join you for now."

I nodded and grinned. "Of course, you're welcome to join us!" I said happily. I saw Garet give me a look in the corner of my eye. 

Mia smiled. "Thank you. As you probably already know, my name is Mia."

"I'm Isaac. This is Garet and this is Ivan," I introduced my friends who each nodded.

"Finally! I couldn't wait any longer!" came a voice from behind Mia. A little blue creature with a crab-claw-like tail hopped onto her shoulder. 

That triggered the other Djinn to hop out to greet their friend. "Fizz!" they all cried, happily squealing with joy. 

"Where have you been all this time? All you Mercury Djinns left Sol Sanctum after the Elemental Stars were sealed!" Flint cried.

Fizz giggled. "We didn't want to be cooped up in there for much longer so we decided to follow the seas. We all got separated from a terrible storm one day. I ended up on the shores of Imil…"

Mia carefully watched each of our Djinn. "Interesting," she said. "You have Djinn as well!"

"Yeah, and we just recently found another one," Garet told her. 

Fever grinned and introduced herself. "That would be me! I'm Fever, nice to meet you all!"

After a short introduction of each Djinn to Mia, we continued climbing the lighthouse. There was a spectacular room with falling waterfalls that flowed through the grating on the floor, keeping the room below us, flooded.

There were damaged areas as well. Large chunks of stone were broken off from the ground and walls, making it a mess. We encountered numerous water-type monsters like jellyfish, and blue slime creatures. They didn't bother us too much. Then there was a group of lizard men blocking our way to the next room. They didn't stand a chance against our combined strength. Mia froze them in place and we shattered them to pieces making them disappear in black smoke just like every other monster.

"These monsters," Ivan said. "Why do their bodies disappear?"

I shrugged. "I think they're not real. Just made out of some sort of magic or something," I said. 

"That could be true…" Ivan replied. 

In the next room, there was a huge cool in the middle, and that's all. No doorways or stairs, just a hole.

"Uh… Did we go the wrong way?" Garet asked. 

Mia shook her head. "No… I'm pretty sure we went the right way. There's no where else to go, but down this hole, I suppose."

I tried to see what was at the bottom, but it was too dark.

Garet and Ivan looked at me, followed by Mia. "What?" I asked, feeling uneasy.

Garet pointed at the hole. "Leaders first," he grinned evilly.

I glared at him and sighed. "I hate you," I told him as I prepared to jump. "Jump five seconds after me."

I took a deep breath and jumped into the hole. At the bottom was a pool of water and a stone tile which I landed roughly on. 

Wait a minute… This room looks familiar. 

Behind me was the goddess statue from earlier before, with her hands out open. And I stood on the one single tile, surrounded by water, nowhere to go…

"Oh sh-, Garet! Don't ju-" I tried to warn him, but I was too late as I saw his boots smack into my face, making me and him fall over into the pool of water with a big splash.

I felt disoriented when I sank under, feeling someone desperately grabbing at my legs as I tried to resurface. With the water stinging my eyes, I saw Garet's terrified face. Garet was scared! I have to help him, or he'll drown!

I desperately pried his strong grip off of my leg, and grabbed his flailing arms. But he acted on his own and clung closely to my body like a frightened child, preventing me to move my arms. But I tried anyways. I kicked as hard as I could, breaking the surface just enough to gulp in air, but I sank again. I got one arm free, and used it to paddle to the ledge, while kicking with my legs. Garet's weight however, kept me submerged underwater and I was running out of air! My lungs burned for air, and I was getting defeated by Garet's greater size and strength…

Suddenly, another pair of hands grabbed Garet and I and pulled us to the ledge. Ivan, with all his strength, helped me hold onto the ledge, and with his help, we got Garet out of the water.

Garet was wide-eyed with shock and fear. He trembled and laid on the ground, gasping for breath. I climbed out and slumped beside him, coughing and gasping for air too. 

"Garet?" I choked after catching my breath, "You okay?"

He didn't answer, he kept shivering with his eyes tightly closed.

"Garet. It's alright! Come on. You're safe!" I told him in a soothing voice. I gently shook his shoulder. "Snap out of it, Garet!"

His red eyes snapped open, confused and fearful. I bent down to meet face to face with him so he could keep his eyes focused on mine. "Garet, it's me, Isaac. Remember?" I said softly. 

No answer. He continued to stare at me, terrified.

"What's going on?" came Mia's voice from behind me. Ivan explained the situation to her, while I tried to get Garet's senses back to reality.

"Garet, it's your buddy, Isaac. Try to remember! You're not in water, you're here with me," I said softly, "You're safe, Garet! You're with us! Ivan and Mia! And don't forget the Djinn!"

He blinked once, then twice, while keeping his eyes on mine. "Isaac?" he whispered. He coughed once, drawing in deep breaths.

"Garet, it's okay. You're safe now," I told him, helping him sit up. He leaned against the stone wall. 

He groaned and rubbed his head. "Jeezes… I… I freaked out…" he muttered under his breath. He shook his head vigorously, flinging water from his hair in all directions.

"It's alright," I said, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder. 

Garet drew in another deep breath. "Isaac… I'm sorry," he whispered, staring hard at the ground. "I didn't… mean to attack you…" 

"Garet, it's alright," I said again. I knew Garet's greatest fear was drowning, and he had just experienced it first hand… poor guy. 

Garet disliked water throughout his life. Crossing the bridges back in Vale were impossible tasks for him. When he was little, he needed to be carried by his father to cross the river, or he'll never make it. He would, instead, cling onto dear life onto someone's leg. But as he grew, he got used to crossing the bridge as he so often used it. But deep water was still his highest fear. That's why he never joined Jenna, Felix, and I when we went swimming near the port of Jenna's old house.

Garet shook his head again. "No… I totally lost it. I'm really sorry…"

"Garet," I said in a hard tone. "Look at me."

He didn't listen.

"Garet. It wasn't your fault! Really, it isn't! It's not your fault you're afraid of drowning," I assured him, grabbing his shoulders. "Come on! Look at me!"

Slowly, he met my eyes. "It's alright. It happens… Don't let that get to you, Garet. What happens comes naturally, so don't blame it on yourself!" I yelled at him, trying to get him to listen. I gave him a truthful look.

He blinked. A small smile creeping up on his face. "Thanks… Isaac. Thanks!" He then pointed to my face, "You're nose is bleeding."

"Huh?" I touched under my sore nose, and looked at my wet, soggy glove, finding a dark stain. 

Great… my nose _is _bleeding. Must've been from Garet's boot…

"I'll take care of that!" Mia offered, kneeling in front of me. 

I shook my head. "It's alright, I can heal myself," I told her, but she didn't refuse to help.

"No, let me take care of this," she said as she removed her white glove and gently placing her warm hand on my face. I felt all warm and relaxed as the little pain I felt on my face faded away. When she was down, she examined my face and smiled. "All better! Except you still have blood all over your face."

I touched my face, feeling no pain. I grinned and kneeled beside the pool and splashed my face with water, not caring if I got wet because I already was.

But then I realized that Mia wasn't dripping wet like the three of us. Ivan was first to notice. "Mia? How did you get over the water?" he asked.

Mia pointed to the now glowing stone 'X' tile that glowed just like the jewel on the goddess statue. "I heard a voice coming from the statue telling me the words from the inscription on that pedestal. It made me wonder what it meant… But then, I heard someone call out to me, telling me to 'unseal' a power with mine," she told us. "I cast Ply on the goddess's jewel and that transferred my energy into that stone tile. That stone tile… it gave me a power to walk on water."

"Walk on water?" Garet asked uneasily.

Mia nodded. "Watch…" she said. She took a step out onto the surface of the water with her foot making a small ripple. Then she took another step, now fully on top of the clear liquid. She gave us a smile. "See? I can walk on wa-"

She suddenly fell _into_ the water, making a splash. 

"Mia!" I cried, about to jump in after her, but stopped when I saw her come up. 

She flushed with embarrassment. "I guess the power only lasts for a little while," she giggled. She wringed her clothes to get rid of excess water. 

I laughed. "Heh. Now we can walk on water! I remember seeing another tile in that flooded room with the stairway. Let's go there. We can explore deeper into the lighthouse now," I smirked.

Garet frowned, however. "I'm gonna stay here…" he muttered. 

"Don't worry, Garet. We'll help you walk across," Ivan assured him, patting Garet's arm. "We won't let you fall."

Mia nodded. "I'll help you across, Garet. Just hold my hand when we do, okay?" she kindly said.

Garet slightly blushed as he nervously smiled at her.

"Yeah, you can _hold_ Mia's hand," I teased him, grinning sheepishly.   
  
"Hey! Uh… well… I guess I could do that…" he grinned back.

I smirked. "Okay, everyone. Let's get going, we got a world to save!" 

Mia laughed, Garet grinned, and Ivan smiled as the four of us, all soaked from head to toe, continued onward through the Mercury Lighthouse.

A/N: Ah! Finished another chapter! I'm not going to go through too much detail of how they get through the lighthouse in the next chapter. It'll be too long! Now I'll be working on my other story! I'll update as soon as I can! Bye bye, for now! Don't forget to review! 


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: HELLO!!!! Sorry for the lack of updates, I didn't have much time on my hands. But I was suddenly hit with inspiration from Flame Ray! Thanks Flame Ray! And everyone else too! Thank you all for reviewing. Please enjoy this next chapter!

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Chapter 14

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Felix's POV

The wind blew harshly over the lighthouse's aerie making me shiver at the supreme cold. The fact that I was soaked, thanks to that odd waterfall transporter that lifted us up here, made matters worse. Alex led us through the oddly made lighthouse that was full of running water left and right. Jellyfish creatures and sea lizards blocked our way, but Saturos and Menardi handled them with ease as they torched the poor critters to smouldering ash.

We stood around the giant hole in the centre, where supposedly you were suppose to throw in the Mercury Star to light the beacon. But we weren't sure if we were suppose to just toss it in…

"What if it doesn't work? We'll lose the Star!" Menardi cried. She was soaked too, but she didn't look at least fazed by the extreme temperature. Her breath swirled around high above us as the wind blew harshly through our hair.

Saturos grabbed the blue orb out of the mythril bag. It glowed with a strong, blue aura. Saturos held it tightly within his hand, examining it. "This Star will know what to do," he said.

Alex grunted, "Do hurry. We have some visitors on the way."

"Visitors? What do you mean? I thought only you could enter this place!" Menardi growled at him. 

Alex just shrugged. "I didn't think she'd follow us. But it seems she has joined up with those boys."

"What?! You mean they're _alive_?!" Jenna cried out. Alex gave her a slight nod and she started to smile. "Thank goodness…"

Kraden too, seemed happy to hear the news. I felt relieved as well. I knew Isaac and Garet would get themselves out of trouble, no matter how tough the situation was.

Saturos looked more annoyed however. "It's amazing they survived the eruption," he growled. "We should grab the Mars Star from them then. Now," He turned towards the hole. "We shall light the beacon…" Without hesitating, he tossed the Mercury Star high into the hole.

I held my breath as it fell silently into the dark abyss below…

Nothing happened.

I looked over at Alex who began to grin. Menardi snorted, "Nothing's-"

Suddenly, shimmers of blue and white energy flashed from the dark hole. They swirled around and around, gathering in the centre right above the chasm. It grew as it gathered more energy, forming a large glowing ball of blue and white. It shone brightly, illuminating the whole aerie a beautiful shade of light blue. It pulsed like a beating heart.

I gaped in awe at the large glowing ball of energy. I felt it's tremendous power flowing all around us. It was calm and gentle, just like a stream.

Saturos was first to speak. "We did it, Menardi. We lit the first lighthouse."

Menardi let out a triumphing laugh. "This is it, Saturos. The first step to unleashing Alchemy back into our world!"

Alex smirked, looking at the glowing orb with delight. Kraden and Jenna silently watched as they hung beside me. 

There was a small cough coming from where we came. Saturos tensed, grinning as he realized who it was. "It's those brats. Everyone, go on ahead, I'll handle them," he said.

"Go on? Where? It's a dead end on the other side," I told him.

Alex answered for him, "Don't worry. That platform there acts as a moving floor that will elevate you up or down when the lighthouse is lit. Energy is restored to the old Lighthouse's mechanisms. We shall escape on there. It'll lead us to the bottom of the lighthouse."

"Go. Take that platform down. I'll take the Mars Star from those brats," Saturos said.

Menardi nodded. "Felix, take your sister and Kraden," she told me.

I nodded. "Yeah, yeah…" I muttered. Jenna and Kraden didn't need to be told like that… I followed her to the large platform as I jumped across the hovering little steps. It was scary to leap on them; you could easily fall and plummet to your doom. Alex chose the easy way; he teleported somewhere. Probably waiting for us at the bottom.

Slowly, I carefully leapt over to the platform, hearing and interruption from atop the aerie.

"Hold it right there! Saterus!" 

Garet came stomping madly up the steps, accompanied by Isaac and two others I've never seen before. A young boy and a beautiful girl stood poised at the side, ready to fight.

"Garet!" Jenna yelled. She smiled happily, seeing the boys both alive and well. 

"Jenna!" Garet cried, noticing us.  


"Jenna!" It was Isaac. He ran beside Garet glaring angrily at me. I did nothing but returned his glare.

"Isaac! Garet! I'm glad you're alive!" Jenna cried.

Menardi growled at her, "Shut up, girl, or I'll hurt you!"

Jenna gave her a nasty look. "You can't do that… Felix will protect me!"

I froze.

Menardi smirked, giving me a sharp sneer. "Oh? You _will_, Felix?" she asked snidely. 

I didn't answer. I felt everyone's eyes watching us. I just averted my eyes to the floor. 

"Of course he will! W-Won't you? Felix?" Jenna asked urgently.

I didn't answer.

Menardi laughed. "He won't disobey me, girl. Now shut your trap!" 

"No!" Jenna bellowed.

Menardi raised her hand so fast, but I grabbed it just in time to stop her from slapping my arrogant sister. I summoned enough courage to face her. "Don't hurt her," I growled.

Menardi was stricken back, surprised at me from stopping her attack. "_You_ dare defy me, Felix?!" she hissed. 

"No- I-" 

She drew back sharply and slapped me. 

I heard gasps beside me. The pain stung my cheek, but I didn't care. I kept my gaze at the ground. 

"Felix…" Jenna whispered.

I shook my head, telling her to be quiet. 

"Menardi, enough!" Saturos growled. "Get out of here, now!"

Menardi hesitated, biting her lip. "But, are you sure you can handle them on your own?" she carefully asked.

Saturos smiled coolly. "Of course. A bunch of children could never defeat me."

Garet roared in rage. "For the last time! I'm not a child, Saterus!"

Saturos snorted at the redhead. "Saterus?" he repeated in a cold, calm voice. 

"Well that's your name, isn't it? You and Melody!" Garet growled as he pointed to Menardi.

I couldn't help but grin at Garet. Menardi was angry. "Melody?!" she hissed. "My name is Menardi, red-haired brat!"

Garet scratched nervously at his head, blushing slightly. "Uh…" he stammered.

Isaac however, laughed. "Ha! I was right! Their names _are_ Menardi and Saturos! I told you so!"

Garet rolled his eyes and muttered something I couldn't hear. Jenna began to giggle quietly.

Saturos looked impatiently at us. "Menardi, go!" he hissed.

Menardi nodded quickly and looked around for a switch or lever that could get this platform to move. Then she found one on the statue of the goddess. There was a click and then the platform began to rumble and descend. 

"Isaac! Garet! Please be careful!" Kraden called out before they disappeared from sight.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Isaac's POV

I watched with contempt as Felix and Menardi disappeared on the moving platform with Jenna and Kraden. Garet let out a low growl before turning back to face our foe, Saturos. 

The cold, blue-haired man grinned evilly at us as he stood and watched us with icy red eyes. "You kids are too late. The Mercury Lighthouse has been lit!" he sneered.

I cursed under my breath. The pulsing orb of blue light behind him radiated enormous amounts of Psynergy around us. And he, Saturos, was also charged of incredible power that I could easily feel from where I was standing. 

Mia was on the verge of tears as she stared at the unforeseen turn of events before her. "It can't be true…" she whispered, clenching her staff tightly in her hands. Her new Djinn friend that we ran into, hidden behind a little waterfall, named Sleet, appeared on her shoulder and gently rubbed his head on her cheek. 

"Do not worry, Mia," the little Djinn cooed softly, "The Lighthouse may have been lighted, but now it will watch over you and your people. You have not lost."

Mia sniffed and nodded slightly. "But…," she whispered. She shook her head then turned and faced our foe.

Saturos drew his sword and smirked at each of us. "I can handle all of you little brats. You're nothing but weaklings!" he roared as he charged.

He caught me by surprise as he knocked me to the side with a swift kick. I landed _hard_ on my right shoulder, feeling a sharp pain flow through my arm. I heard some scuffling, yelling, and then a clash of two swords. I got up quickly and felt a light touch on my left shoulder. Mia cast Ply on me and smiled. 

"You alright?" she asked.

I briskly nodded and clambered to my feet in haste, drawing out my own blade.

Garet was barely holding up his own as he blocked most of Saturos's attacks with his short sword. Saturos, however, had the upper hand. He had more experience with a sword, plus, his sword was bigger. He forced Garet back, almost to the edge of the aerie. 

Ivan quickly cast a quick lightning spell that stunned Saturos just for a moment; long enough for Garet to retaliate against him. Garet thrust forward and drove Saturos back just slightly. The bigger man growled and jumped back. 

Fire began to surround his body as he summoned his Psynergy. "Die, fools!" Saturos roared.

I cursed silently and ran ahead of everyone. "Granite! Shield all of us! NOW!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

A flash of yellow erupted around us before the flames embraced our bodies. I suddenly felt the scorching heat. It was unbearable! I couldn't breath!

But it soon ended and I felt the cool, winter air around me again. I saw Saturos look disbelieving at us as we stood unharmed by his fiery attack. I grinned at him.

"What?!" he hissed. "I've underestimated your powers. Hmph. No matter." He twirled his blade once in a circle and smirked. "This is going to be quite amusing…" 

__

'Careful, Isaac. My power no longer protects you but my energy remains,' Granite mind-spoke.

I gave a slight nod. "Saturos, you should give up while you can," I told him sternly.

The man narrowed his crimson eyes to slits and twitched his lips into a thin smile, mockingly. "Foolish boy. What makes you think that a bunch of little brats could ever defeat _me_, the Great Saturos?"

"You don't seem that great at all," Garet muttered under his breath. I smirked at his comment. Unfortunately, Saturos heard it. 

"Enough of this idle chitchat! It's time for you to die!" With that, Saturos lunged forward, straight for me! 

He swung from the left and I managed to block it, almost losing my grip on my sword's handle. Saturos was more powerful than I had intended…

Crimson eyes glared icily into mine as he stepped back and swung again, this time from the top. My arms were sluggish from the hard impact from last attack that I moved too slow to block…

A sudden flash of purple lightning cracked before my eyes, hitting Saturos directly but also singeing me as well. I let out a sharp cry as I felt a burning pain surge through me. My arms were numb. I heard a clatter and realized it was my sword. Gritting my teeth, I managed to stay standing in jolts of pain. Saturos was still standing too, unfortunately, baring his sharp fangs for all of us to see.

"Isaac!" It was Ivan. "Oh God, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hit you as well!" Ivan cried in worry as he rushed beside me. 

"Don't worry about it!" I said quickly through clenched teeth. Mia had already began another healing spell on me.

Saturos growled at us and called upon another Psynergy spell…

Shit…

"Mia! Ivan! Isaac! DOWN!!" Garet roared as he leapt in front of us. 

I pushed Ivan and Mia down to the stone floor with me. Garet summoned his own Psynergy and called forth a shield of fire…

Both opposing Fire Psynergies collided in a sudden flash of orange and immense heat. I cringed at the burning air around us. I felt Ivan and Mia tense beside me. A sudden cry caught my attention; I looked up, feeling the heat water my eyes, and saw that Garet was barely avoiding the attack… 

"Garet!" I choked out. It was too hard to breathe…

Finally, the flames subsided. The three of us were okay but…

I took a deep breath before rushing towards a falling Garet. I caught him before he hit the ground. I could feel the flame's heat still on his slightly burned body through my gloves. 

The redhead coughed and grinned at me. "Don't…worry about me…" he croaked.

"Garet!" Mia cried as she knelt beside us. She started another healing spell…

"Not so fast!" came a roar. 

"Gust!" Ivan yelled. 

An angered Saturos was unexpectedly blown back by the Jupiter Djinn's attack. He landed on his back with a grunt. 

Mia continued to heal Garet. "Take care of him," I told her.

She gave me nod as I got up and grabbed my sword. The dark man before us hissed as he got up. Pure hatred plastered over his features. "You brats are starting to annoy me…" he growled. 

I smirked. "Give up yet?" I taunted him. 

He was more furious at me. "You shall be first to DIE!" he screamed and leapt into the air!

"Flint!" I called. A flash of yellow and a sudden feeling of power in my sword was my answer. I raised the golden blade above my head and blocked the man's attack with ease. 

Bewildered, Saturos glanced at my sword before attacking again. I swung first, hitting nothing by air as he leapt to the side. He then slashed but I ducked and forced a punch into his _hard_ gut. I pulled back in pain. It was like punching a stone wall…

He coughed but didn't falter in his stance. "Insolent pest!" he yelled. He slashed again, this time using both hands, and brought his sword down quickly. I managed to block it with my fading sword. I was knocked back by his strength and lost my balance. 

Saturos followed quickly with a side slash that knocked me (again) into the stone floor. A stinging pain in my side flowed all over my body, blurring my vision. Darkness flooded into me… I didn't know what happened next… I heard someone yell my name. Then I heard someone screaming…

Sounded like a girl's scream…

Mia?

I heard laughter soon after. A deep, evil laughter… 

__

'Isaac!'

…echoing around me in my dark world… Everything was black… But why?

__

'Isaac! Please! Wake up!'

…Who…? 

__

'Isaac! We need you! Everyone needs you!'

Who…? Everyone…?

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'Isaac! Wake up!'

Everyone…? Garet…

__

'Isaac… Please!'

Ivan…

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'Please…'

Mia…

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Everyone…

'Isaac?!'

Flint…

'Isaac! Hurry! Open your eyes! Everyone…'

Everyone… 

I snapped my eyes open, feeling a surge of pain flow through me once more, dulling my vision. I blinked several times and froze at what I saw…

Mia lay still on the ground, badly hurt. Red stained her robes of white… Garet was back up, but still injured from before. He grimaced at every attack he made on the now weakened Saturos. Ivan was panting, fully exhausted from using most of his Psynergy…

Saturos, no matter how weakened he was, was still stronger than all of us…

__

'Isaac! Quickly! Gather both mine and Granite's energies into one to summon a guardian of the ancient desert!' Flint cried. 

I hissed in pain as I crawled to my knees. That's when I noticed my clothes covered in thick blood…. _My_ blood…

Cringing, I managed to weakly stand up. Clutching my deep wound, I watched once more, the battle before me.

Garet was faltering quickly from blocking all of Saturos' attacks. Ivan couldn't use any of his spells for fear of hitting Garet.

Enough is enough. Time to end this… 

I closed my eyes, sensing the air. I could feel the Mercury Star's energy real easily but that wasn't what I wanted.

I felt it, just slightly…. Lingering in the air… The familiar presence of Venus Psynergy. I called for all of it to come to me; to join me. 

Grasping the air with my fingertips, I felt it all flow towards me. The energy wasn't faint anymore. I could feel it around me, more powerful than the Mercury Star…

I opened my eyes, seeing a soft yellow glow around me. Warm and gentle… focused all the energy into my palm.

__

'Now, Isaac. Summon Ramses!'

At the top of my lungs, I yelled it out to warn Garet and Ivan, and mostly, to bring fear to the evil being on before the Mercury Star, "I summon RAMSES!!"

The golden glow around me intensified to a blinding white light that surrounded my whole body. I let out a cry as I felt an immense power flow from within me burst out. 

A deep growl broke through the sky. Sand… Sand?!

Yes, I wasn't seeing things. _Sand _swirled around me…Suddenly, a large figure appeared above my head. A large moving stone statue, which looked like a skeleton-like head on a triangle-like structure with two blocky hands, hovered above us. I froze in awe, staring at the so-called guardian of the desert. 

__

"Isaac, wielder of Venus, what is it that you wish?" a booming voice erupted in my head. 

Saturos… Take him down with all your might! I ordered the guardian. 

"As you wish."

I glanced over at the shocked and surprised faces of my friends. They stood frozen, along with Saturos, staring at the creature above them.

"Garet! Ivan! Move!" I warned them. 

They ran far into the opposite direction just as Ramses clapped both his blocky hands together with a deafening boom. Chunks of rock and ancient stone showered over the evil man who stood frozen in place. Seconds have passed and Saturos was nowhere to be seen under the pile of rocks.

Ramses then disappeared in a wisp of yellow light, taking along with him the fallen rocks and revealing an unconscious, bruised and bleeding Saturos.

All my strength drained away with the light… I collapsed onto my knees in pure exhaustion. Feeling a strong arm supporting me from falling any further, I looked up and saw Garet's slightly singed face.

"Isaac! You okay?" he asked. 

I rolled my eyes at him. "Does it _look_ like I'm okay?" I asked him back. But then, I remembered Mia. "Mia! You-ack!…" 

Argh… I felt a surge of pain run through my body. I winced, gritting my teeth as I continued, "You have to save her!"

Garet looked over at Mia's still form. Ivan was feeling for a pulse…

Ivan shook his head, "She's still alive… But her pulse is faint… I don't know if…" he trailed off, shaking his head sadly.

No… 

Wait… The Water of Life…

Trying my best to ignore the pain, I reached into my bag, feeling the small bottle. My hands were trembling when I gave the bottle to Garet. "Give it to her…" I mumbled.

Pain flowed through me once more. I couldn't take it anymore… 

"Isaac!" I heard Garet's shaky voice, but I couldn't see him anymore. The pain was overwhelming; drowning me within it… into darkness…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Garet's POV

"Isaac!" 

I shook his body, just slightly, to get him to wake up. No use… His body hung limp in my arms. He was looking pale and weak from the huge blood loss…

Shit! What do I do?!

__

'Baka!' came Forge's voice. _'Hayaku _(hurry up) _and give the Water of Life to the girl!'_

Water of Life?

I looked at the golden bottle, stained with blood, that Isaac had given me. I remember it now. The mayor of Vault had given this as a gift for catching those thieves.

Carefully, I laid Isaac's unconscious body on the ground, and limped to Mia's side. Burning pain surged through every limb in my body, making me curse with every step. Trying to shield a blast of fire with a shield of fire wasn't a good idea after all… But luckily, Forge and Fever had lent me their strength. If they hadn't… There would be one crispy body smouldering atop the Mercury Lighthouse.

Mia was as pale as her white robes, well, ignoring the blood staining it red… She was barely breathing…

I knelt down, more like drop, beside her and held her head on my knee. It took a lot of effort to pry open the small bottle. 

Ivan watched in silence as I carefully poured all the contents in the bottle into Mia's pale lips. 

Seconds painfully passed… There was no change in her state.

"Mia…" I whispered. "Mia? Come on… Please, wake up." I urged the sleeping girl. "Mia…" I started to tremble with fear. 

If she doesn't wake up… Isaac will… 

Hot tears stung my eyes… I choked back a sob, feeling all hope….fading away.

This can't be happening… I shook my head. No… It can't be…

Just then, a soft moan came from a stirring body in my arms. I jerked up, relieved. "Mia!" 

Her aqua eyes fluttered open, confused. When she saw me, she sat up in a flash. "Garet! W-What happened?! Where's Saturos?!" she asked, showing no signs of ever having a mortal wound.

I gaped at her for a moment, surprised that she healed so quickly…

Ivan spoke first. "Mia! Thank goodness you're alright! Hurry! Isaac-"

"Isaac!" I interrupted. "Mia! Heal Isaac!" 

Mia looked past me saw Isaac's unconscious body. She hurried to his side and performed her healing spell. 

Relieved, I let out a sigh.

A sudden noise coming from Saturos' body caught my attention. A groan of pain…

Damn… He's still alive! 

Ivan noticed it too. "Garet, what are you…?" he asked, seeing me climb painfully to my feet, sword clenched tightly within my hands.

"I'm going to finish this," I told him, angrily. I didn't mean to sound angry at him. It was the sight of that evil man, Saturos, that made my blood boil. I limped towards the fallen body, sword ready at my side.

However, I froze when I saw a figure with blue hair and icy blue eyes, appear behind the Mercury Star. 

The one called Alex…

I bared my teeth at him in anger. What did he want?! None of us were in any condition to fight…

"Stop," he told me in a rather calm voice.

I tensed and glared at him. 

"I have no intention to fight you," he said, raising his arms as to surrender. 

"What do you want?!" I growled at him.

The man smirked. "Saving him," he pointed to Saturos.

Just then, Saturos moaned and climbed to his feet. "I don't need _you_ to save me, boy." he hissed through his fangs. He almost stumbled over if it hadn't been Alex who caught him. Now leaning beside the blue-haired guy for support, he gave me a cold stare.

"Alex…" a soft voice from behind me. "Why? Why are you doing this?" Mia, who was still healing Isaac, who looked a little better, stared tearfully up at the man she knew. 

A flash of sadness flashed over his eyes but it disappeared as fast as it came. "Mia, my dear. I really must apologize for what I _have_ and for what I _am _doing with these people," he spoke, showing no sign of emotion at all. "You see, Mia," he continued, "Staying here wasn't an option for me. There's nothing here for me, in fact. I'm not like you… You're gentle, kind, caring… While I despise the useless humans around us." He said the last sentence bitterly.

"There was no way that I could be a healer like you, Mia. Everything you taught me… about caring for others with my powers, was all a joke to me."

Mia shook her head sadly, looking away from him. "Alex… I'm sorry." she said.

I was confused. Why would _she_ be sorry? That Alex guy should! I was about to say it, but I realized that I shouldn't get involved with something I don't understand…

"Sorry?" Alex asked, raising a brow. "What for, Mia? I chose to join Saturos on my own. You didn't do anything wrong. The return of Alchemy is what I want for this dead planet, so that is why I'm doing this. Don't blame yourself, my dear." With that, he warped away with Saturos, leaving us gaping in surprise at the empty space where those two once stood.

Then I heard a snarling voice to the side, "Fools. Next time, I'll be ready to take you all down!" Saturos and Alex had warped to the moving platform thing. He sneered at us. 

I glared back at him. "Oh yeah?" I hissed. "We're going to beat you up the same way we did before!"

Mia, however, was more concerned with Alex. "H-How…? You never knew how to teleport!"

Alex smirked. "That was the old Alex, Mia. I can't be the same Alex forever," he answered. "Before we leave, do you still possess the Mars Star?"

I growled at him. Should I say yes? Or no?

If only Isaac was conscious, he would know what to do… 

"Well? Do you?" he asked again, impatiently.

I nervously looked at the ground. "Uh… No, we don't!" I blabbed.

I saw Ivan give me a look that said 'What kind of lie was that?!'

Alex smirked again. "Really? Then I believe you. I don't feel it's presence on any of you," he said, brushing back his hair with his free hand.

He then turned around and pushed a switch on the statue, making the platform move down. "Farewell."

I let out my breath, relieved that Alex really believed me. Then I limped towards Mia. "How is he?" 

Mia wiped away her tears. "I healed his wound, but he's exhausted. He should sleep for now," she said, somewhat feeling down.

"You alright?" I asked her, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

She nodded and smiled. "Yeah! I'm fine! In fact, I feel greater than before after I woke up. What did you do?"

"Huh? Oh! I gave you some Water of Life." I told her, showing her the empty bottle.

"Water of Life? It sounds just like the healing waters of Mercury…" Her eyes widened. "The healing waters of Mercury!" she gasped. "The water has returned, now that the Lighthouse is lit…"

Healing waters? That sounds familiar…

Ivan piped up with my answer. "The healing waters, Garet. We need some to take to Tret."

"Tret? Oh yeah! Tret!" I said. "Come on, let's get outta here. I'll carry Isaac." I took a step and almost toppled over. I forgot about the pain…

Mia placed a hand on my shoulder. I felt a warm and gentle feeling all over my body. The pain faded away…

"Thanks!" I said. I stood up, feeling better. I sheathed my sword, grabbed Isaac's and placed it back in it's scabbard and then lifted Isaac up and onto my back with ease. He was actually much lighter than he looked. 

The platform thing had risen back in place with a soft murmur. Carefully, I leapt from one floating platform, to the next. I've been hopping on steps all day…

With a small click, the four of us heading straight down….

A/N: Ah! I hope you liked this chapter! I've changed so much of the dialogue. Hmm, oh well. I can't remember everything they said. So it'll be awhile to update again! So until then, take care!


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